This is what is called a global or aggregate settlement. If the bellwether trials result in big verdicts for the plaintiffs, J&J may be forced to pay out a large sum of money to resolve the remaining claims. Once the consolidated discovery stage is completed, a group of individual sunscreen cases will be selected for “bellwether trials.” Actual jury trials will be held in these cases and the outcome of the trials will help guide negotiations for the settlement of all the remaining cases. The focus of this discovery stage will be on the scientific evidence regarding the presence of benzene in the recalled sunscreen products and the evidence linking benzene to certain types of cancer.
Once this occurs there will be a consolidated civil discovery phase that typically lasts 18-24 months. The sunscreen lawsuits in the federal courts will eventually be consolidated into a “class action” MDL (Multidistrict Litigation). We are still in the very earliest stages of the sunscreen recall litigation, but we can already anticipate that these cases will follow a similar path as other mass tort product liability lawsuits. Sunscreen Lawsuits Will Likely End in a “Global Settlement” Recently, however, a growing number of sunscreen lawsuits have been traditional product liability claims by plaintiffs alleging that they developed leukemia or other types of cancer from benzene exposure in sunscreen. Initially, most of the sunscreen lawsuits have been “consumer class action” cases as opposed to traditional personal injury claims. J&J’s sunscreen recall was promptly followed by a growing tide of sunscreen recall lawsuits. J&J recalled these products after their own testing confirmed Valisure’s claims that the products contained unsafe levels of benzene. AVEENO® Protect + Refresh aerosol sunscreen.NEUTROGENA® Ultra Sheer® aerosol sunscreen, and.NEUTROGENA® Invisible Daily™ defense aerosol sunscreen,.NEUTROGENA® Cool Dry Sport aerosol sunscreen,.NEUTROGENA® Beach Defense® aerosol sunscreen,.The recalled sunscreen products included: In July 2021, shortly after the Valisure announcement, Johnson & Johnson issued a nationwide safety recall of 5 very popular brands of spray-on sunscreen. Exposure to benzene has also been linked to Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and other health conditions. Studies have found that regular exposure to benzene for just 12 months is enough to cause leukemia. Benzene is a byproduct of crude oil that is used in the manufacture of plastics. The presence of benzene in a product like sunscreen was very concerning because benzene is a well-known human carcinogen. In a public safety announcement, Valisure advised that it found lab testing found dangerously high levels of benzene in many very popular spray-on sunscreen products. In May of this year, the consumer safety watchdog company Valisure made a shocking discovery when it performed quality testing on various consumer sun care products. Benzene is a human carcinogen and the recall has led to product liability lawsuits against the sunscreen manufacturers. This new guidance from the FDA comes over a year after the discovery of high benzene levels in spray-on sunscreen led to massive recalls of popular brands such as Coppertone, Aveeno, Banana Boat, and others. August 2022 UpdateĮarlier this week, the FDA published new summer safety tips and guidelines which included a brand new warning that consumers should check their spray-on sunscreen inventory and discard any products that may contain benzene. In this post, we will evaluate how much these sunscreen recall lawsuit settlement amounts (if they are successful) by comparing them to settlements in prior mass tort cases involving defective products and similar injuries.
These sunscreen lawsuits will likely be consolidated into a new “class-action” MDL. Thousands of additional sunscreen lawsuits are expected to be filed against J&J (and possibly other manufacturers) moving forward.
Hundreds of sunscreen recall lawsuits have been filed against Johnson & Johnson since the discovery of benzene in sunscreen prompted the company to recall 5 major brands of Neutrogena and Aveeno spray-on sunscreen.
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