Johnson & Johnson

History

1873–1885: Before Johnson & Johnson

Robert Wood Johnson began his professional training at age 16 as a pharmaceutical apprentice at an apothecary run by his mother's cousin, James G. Wood, in Poughkeepsie, New York. Johnson co-founded his own company with George J. Seabury in 1873. The New York-based Seabury & Johnson became known for its medicated plasters. Robert Wood Johnson represented the company at the Centennial Exposition in 1876. There he heard Joseph Lister's explanation of a new procedure: antiseptic surgery. Johnson parted ways with his business partner Seabury in 1885.

1886: Founding of Johnson & Johnson

Robert Wood Johnson joined his brothers, James Wood Johnson and Edward Mead Johnson, and created a line of ready-to-use sterile surgical dressings in 1886. They founded Johnson & Johnson in 1886 with 14 employees, eight women and six men. Johnson & Johnson opened its first factory building in the old Janeway and Carpenter factory on Neilson Street in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

They manufactured sterile surgical supplies, household products, and medical guides. Those products initially featured a logo that resembled the signature of James Wood Johnson. Robert Wood Johnson served as the first president of the company.

1887–1942: Early history

The company sold medicated plasters such as Johnson & Johnson's Black Perfect Taffeta Court Plaster and also manufactured the world's first sterile surgical products, including sutures, absorbent cotton, and gauze. The company published "Modern Methods of Antiseptic Wound Treatment", a guide on how to do sterile surgery using its products, and in 1888, distributed 85,000 copies to doctors and pharmacists across the United States. The manual was translated into three languages and distributed worldwide. The first commercial first aid kit was designed in 1888 to support railroad construction workers, who were often hundreds of miles from medical care. The kits included antiseptic emergency supplies and directions for field use. In 1901, the company published the Handbook of First Aid, a guide on applying first aid.

In 1889, the company hired pharmacist Fred Kilmer as its first scientific director, who led its scientific research and wrote educational manuals. Kilmer's first achievement as scientific director was developing the industrial sterilization process. He was employed at the company until 1934.

Johnson & Johnson had more than 400 employees and 14 buildings by 1894. In 1894, the company began producing Johnson's Baby Powder, the company's first baby product.

The company introduced the world's first maternity kit in 1894 to aid at-home births, called Dr. Simpson's Maternity Packet, presumably after Scottish obstetrician James Young Simpson. The kit included a washcloth; safety pins; sterile sutures, sponges, and gauze; antiseptic soap; an obstetric sheet and ligatures; flannel to wrap the baby in; and a chart for keeping birth records. The products were later marketed separately, including "Lister's Towels", the world's first mass-produced sanitary napkins. Kilmer wrote "Hygiene in Maternity", an instructional guide for mothers before and after delivery. In 1904, the company expanded its baby care products with "Lister's Sanitary Diapers", a diaper product for infants.

During the Spanish–American War, Johnson & Johnson developed and donated 300,000 packaged compressed surgical dressings for soldiers in the field and created a trauma stretcher for field medics. The company donated its products in disaster relief efforts of the 1900 Galveston hurricane and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

1943: Credo and IPO

In 1943, as the company was preparing for its initial public offering (IPO), Robert Wood Johnson wrote what the company called "Our Credo", a defining document that has been used to guide the company's decisions over the years.

The company became a public company via an initial public offering in 1944.

In 1943, Vesta Stoudt identified a need for waterproof tape for ammunition boxes in World War Two. She wrote to Franklin D. Roosevelt with the idea; the president commissioned Revolite, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson at the time, to develop and manufacture a cloth-based adhesive tape, later duct tape.

1944–1999: Acquisitions and international expansion

In 1944, the company began selling Johnson's Baby Lotion. The same year, the company established Ethicon Suture Laboratories. In 1947, G. F. Merson Ltd. was acquired to expand the company's suture business in the United Kingdom. The company was rebranded and absorbed into Ethicon.

Johnson & Johnson chairman of the board, Robert Wood Johnson, published Or Forfeit Freedom, in 1947. The book outlined that businesses need to develop sustainable methods of using natural resources for the future of business and the planet.

In 1955, Ethicon developed a micro-point reverse-cutting ophthalmic needle attached to the suture. Micro-point surgical needles and sutures allowed for advances in modern vision surgery.

In 1956, the company opened its first Asia-based operating company in the Philippines.

Johnson & Johnson opened its first operating company in India in 1957.

In 1959, Johnson & Johnson acquired McNeil Consumer Healthcare.

A year later, the company sold Tylenol for the first time without a prescription. In the same year, Cilag Chemie joined Johnson & Johnson as Cilag.

In 1961, Johnson & Johnson acquired Janssen Pharmaceuticals, which had been founded in 1953 by Belgian scientist Paul Janssen, the inventor of Fentanyl.

In 1963, Philip B. Hofmann succeeded Robert Wood Johnson as chairman and CEO. He was the first non-Johnson family member to become chief executive. Hofmann also helped found the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. In the same year, the Food and Drug Administration approved a synthetic hormone contraceptive pill, Ortho-Novum.

In 1965, Johnson & Johnson acquired Codman & Shurtleff. The acquired company produced neurovascular devices and neurosurgery technologies. In 1968, the company developed the RhoGAM vaccine. The vaccine prevented Rh hemolytic disease in newborns.

2000–2019

William C. Weldon was appointed chairman and CEO of the company in 2002.

In 2003, Ethicon launched Vicryl Plus Antibacterial Sutures. The products prevent post-surgery infection within stitches. In 2006, Johnson & Johnson acquired Pfizer's consumer healthcare business and merged it with its consumer healthcare business group. The acquisition added brands like Listerine, Bengay, and Neosporin to the company's portfolio. In the same year, Johnson & Johnson's Janssen Pharmaceuticals, launched Prezista, a protease inhibitor for patients with failed previous HIV therapies.

In October 2008, the company acquired HealthMedia, later renamed to Health & Wellness Solutions and the Human Performance Institute.

In December 2008, Johnson & Johnson acquired Mentor Corporation for $1 billion and merged its operations into Ethicon.

In October 2010, J&J acquired Crucell for $2.4 billion. The subsidiary operates as the centre for vaccines, within Johnson & Johnson pharmaceuticals business group.

In April 2012, Alex Gorsky became chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson.

In November 2015, Biosense Webster acquired Coherex Medical, expanding the company's range of treatment options for patients with atrial fibrillation.

In February 2017, Johnson & Johnson acquired Abbott Medical Optics from Abbott Laboratories for $4.325 billion, adding the new division into Johnson & Johnson Vision.

In June 2017, Johnson & Johnson acquired Actelion in a $30 billion deal, the largest ever purchase by the company. After the purchase, Johnson & Johnson spun off Actelion's research and development unit into a separate legal entity.

In August 2017, Johnson & Johnson Vision acquired TearScience.

2020: COVID-19 pandemic

Johnson & Johnson committed over $1 billion toward the development of the not-for-profit Janssen COVID-19 vaccine in partnership with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Janssen Vaccines, in partnership with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), developed the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine based on the same technology used to make its Ebola vaccine.

Demand for Tylenol surged two to four times normal levels in March 2020. In response, the company increased production globally; the Tylenol plant in Puerto Rico operated 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

In response to the shortage of ventilators, Ethicon, with Prisma Health, made and distributed the VESper Ventilator Expansion Splitter, which uses 3D printing technology, to allow one ventilator to support two patients.

In August 2020, the Federal government of the United States agreed to pay more than $1 billion to Johnson & Johnson for the production of 100 million doses of the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine. Johnson & Johnson and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) began clinical trials of J&J's vaccine in September 2020.

In September 2020, Johnson & Johnson started its 60,000-person phase 3 adenovirus-based vaccine trial. The trial was paused on October 12, 2020, because a volunteer became ill, but the company said it found no evidence that the vaccine had caused the illness and announced on October 23, 2020, that it would resume the trial.

2020-present

In November 2020, Johnson & Johnson acquired Momenta Pharmaceuticals for $6.5 billion.

In January 2022, Joaquin Duato became CEO of Johnson & Johnson.

In December 2022, Johnson & Johnson acquired cardiovascular medical technology company Abiomed for $16.6 billion.

Kenvue, the consumer products division of Johnson & Johnson that owned Neutrogena, Aveeno, Tylenol, Listerine, Johnson's, Band-Aid and other brands became a public company via an initial public offering in May 2023. At that time, Johnson & Johnson maintained a controlling stake of around 91%. In July 2023, Johnson & Johnson launched an exchange offer to split-off Kenvue, reducing its stake to 9.5%. In 2024, Johnson & Johnson sold its remaining 9.5% stake in Kenvue.

Johnson & Johnson holds a patent on the tuberculosis-treating drug bedaquiline, with secondary patents in at least 25 out of 43 countries with a high burden of tuberculosis blocking affordable generic versions of the drug, preventing millions of people from accessing the life-saving treatment. Though the patent was set to expire in many countries in 2023, Johnson & Johnson applied to extend the patent. In July 2023, Stop TB Partnership announced that after negotiations with Johnson & Johnson, it had been granted licenses to produce generic versions of the drug.

Johnson & Johnson acquired Ambrx Biopharma for $2 billion in January 2024, Shockwave Medical for $13.1 billion in April 2024, and Proteologix for $850 million in May 2024.

In June 2024, Johnson & Johnson MedTech released Polyphonic, a digital surgical platform. The platform features surgery planning, surgical video, and telepresence services for laparoscopic surgeries.

In April 2025, Johnson & Johnson acquired Intra-Cellular Therapies, a company specializing in medications for behavioral disorders, including schizophrenia, depression, and bipolar disorder, for $14.6 billion.

Chairmen history

Robert Wood Johnson I (1887–1910)

James Wood Johnson (1910–1932)

Robert Wood Johnson II (1932–1963)

Philip B. Hofmann (1963–1973)

Richard B. Sellars (1973–1976)

James E. Burke (1976–1989)

Ralph S. Larsen (1989–2002)

William C. Weldon (2002–2012)

Alex Gorsky (2012–2022)

Joaquin Duato (2023–present)

Business segments

The company operates 2 divisions: Innovative Medicine (64% of 2025 revenues) and MedTech (36% of 2025 revenues).

Johnson & Johnson Innovation, LLC (JJI) is a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson. JJI focuses on early-stage, life science, and technology innovations to advance the company's research and development pipeline. JJI provides startups with sourcing, infrastructure, and capital equipment at JLABS, financing & venture capital at JJDC, Inc., and collaborations leading to the potential development of medical device technologies, pharmaceuticals, and therapeutics. There are 4 JJI Innovation Centers located in London, Shanghai, Boston (Cambridge), and the San Francisco Bay Area. There are 13 JLABS incubators located in the Bay Area (San Francisco and South San Francisco), Belgium (Beerse), Boston (Cambridge and Lowell), Houston (TMC), New York City, Philadelphia, San Diego, Shanghai, Toronto, and Washington, D.C.

Innovative Medicine

The Innovative Medicine (formerly known as pharmaceuticals) segment is focused on six therapeutic areas: immunology (rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and psoriasis); infectious diseases (HIV/AIDS); neuroscience (mood disorders, neurodegenerative disorders and schizophrenia); oncology (solid tumours including lung cancer, prostate cancer and bladder cancer, and hematologic malignancies); cardiovascular, metabolism, retina (thrombosis and diabetes), and pulmonary hypertension (pulmonary arterial hypertension).

Major products produced by the Innovative Medicine division are CARVYKTI (ciltacabtagene autoleucel) for multiple myeloma (2.0% of revenues); DARZALEX (daratumumab and hyaluronidase-fihj), also for multiple myeloma (15.2% of revenues); ERLEADA (apalutamide), for prostate cancer (3.8% of revenues); REMICADE (infliximab), for inflammatory diseases (1.9% of revenues); SIMPONI/SIMPONI ARIA (golimumab), for rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (pJIA) (2.8% of revenues); STELARA (ustekinumab), for plaque psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, Crohn's disease, and ulcerative colitis (6.5% of revenues); TREMFYA (guselkumab), for plaque psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, Crohn's disease, and ulcerative colitis (5.5% of revenues); INVEGA SUSTENNA/XEPLION (paliperidone palmitate), for schizophrenia (4.1% of revenues); SPRAVATO (Esketamine), a nasal spray for depression (1.8% of revenues); OPSUMIT (macitentan)/OPSYNVI (macitentan/tadalafil) for pulmonary arterial hypertension (2.5% of revenues); and UPTRAVI (selexipag) for pulmonary arterial hypertension (2.0% of revenues).

MedTech

The MedTech division produces products used for cardiovascular (9.5% of revenues), orthopaedics (DePuy Synthes) (9.8% of revenues), surgery (Ethicon) (10.8% of revenues), and vision treatments (Johnson & Johnson Vision) (5.8% of revenues).

The Cardiovascular & Specialty Solutions Group includes electrophysiology products that diagnose and treat cardiac arrhythmias; devices used in the endovascular treatment of hemorrhagic and ischemic stroke; solutions that focus on breast reconstruction and aesthetics, and ear, nose and throat procedures.

The DePuy Synthes orthopaedics portfolio is composed of specialties including joint reconstruction, trauma, extremities, craniomaxillofacial, spinal surgery and sports medicine, in addition to the VELYS digital surgery portfolio.

The Ethicon surgical portfolio includes advanced surgical innovations and solutions such as sutures, staplers, energy devices, and advanced hemostats, as well as interventional ablation, surgical robotics, and digital solutions.

In July 2026, the Food and Drug Administration granted De Novo marketing authorization for Johnson & Johnson's Ottava robotic surgical system for multiple upper-abdominal general surgery procedures, marking the company's entry into the U.S. soft-tissue robotic surgery market.

The Johnson & Johnson Vision portfolio includes contact lenses, intraocular lens, automated treatment for dry eye, and four brands of laser vision correction systems.

Corporate affairs

Board of directors

The members of the board of directors of Johnson & Johnson are:

Joaquin Duato

Mary Beckerle

Jennifer Doudna

Marillyn Hewson

Paula Johnson

Hubert Joly

Mark McClellan

John Morikis

Daniel Pinto

Mark Weinberger

Nadja West

Eugene Woods

Environmental record

In 2017, Johnson & Johnson was ranked 10th on the "Green Rankings" by Newsweek.

In 2020, the company agreed to spend $800 million to change its packaging to make it more sustainable by using only recyclable, reusable or compostable plastic, and recycled paper and pulp-based packaging.

Johnson & Johnson operates a 75 kilowatt solar electric system in Spring House, Pennsylvania.

Independent climate-data platforms show that most of Johnson & Johnson's emissions come from its supply chain rather than from its own buildings. Tracenable and DitchCarbon estimate that "purchased goods and services" – the production of medicines, medical devices and packaging that J&J buys – accounts for about 72% of its Scope 3 emissions, roughly 4.8 million metric tons of CO₂e per year. This matches wider health-care research finding that about 70% of the sector's climate footprint is embedded in global supply chains for drugs, equipment and other goods.

Contributions

Johnson & Johnson has provided funding to nonprofit organizations including the Institute for Advanced Study, the Human Rights Campaign, Women Deliver, the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH), the Pandemic Action Network, and the C. D. Howe Institute.

Recalls and litigation

1982 Chicago Tylenol murders

On September 29, 1982, a "Tylenol scare" began when the first of seven individuals died in Chicago metropolitan area, after ingesting Extra Strength Tylenol that had been deliberately laced with cyanide. Within a week, the company pulled 31 million bottles of capsules back from retailers, making it one of the first major recalls in American history. The incident led to reforms in the packaging of over-the-counter substances and to federal anti-tampering laws. The case remains unsolved and no suspects have been charged. Johnson & Johnson's quick response, including a nationwide recall, was widely praised by public relations experts and the media and was the gold standard for corporate crisis management.

2010 children's product recall

In April 2010, McNeil Consumer Healthcare, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, voluntarily recalled 43 over-the-counter children's medicines, including Tylenol, Tylenol Plus, Motrin, Zyrtec and Benadryl. The recall was conducted after a routine inspection at a manufacturing facility in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, United States, revealed that some "products may not fully meet the required manufacturing specifications". Affected products may contain a "higher concentration of active ingredients" or exhibit other manufacturing defects. Products shipped to Canada, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Guam, Guatemala, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Panama, Trinidad and Tobago, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Fiji were included in the recall. A dedicated website was established by the company listing affected products and other consumer information.

2010 hip-replacement recall

In August 2010, DePuy Synthes, a division of Johnson & Johnson, recalled its ASR (articular surface replacement) hip prostheses from the market. DePuy said the recall was due to unpublished National Joint Registry data showing a 12% revision rate for resurfacing at five years and an ASR XL revision rate of 13%. All hip prostheses fail in some patients, but it is expected that the rate will be about 1% a year.

Pathologically, the failing prosthesis had several effects. Metal debris from wear of the implant led to a reaction that destroyed the soft tissues surrounding the joint, leaving some patients with long term disability. Ions of cobalt and chromium – the metals from which the implant was made – were also released into the blood and cerebrospinal fluid in some patients.

In March 2013, a jury in Los Angeles ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay more than $8.3 million in damages to a Montana man in the first related case.

The issue was estimated to affect 8,000 patients in the U.S. In November 2013, the company announced a settlement of the issue in the U.S., estimating a cost of $2.5 billion.

2010 Tylenol recall

In 2010 and 2011, Johnson & Johnson voluntarily recalled some over-the-counter products, including Tylenol, due to an odor caused by 2,4,6-Tribromoanisole, which was used to treat wooden pallets on which product packaging materials were transported and stored.

Shareholders lawsuit

In 2010, a group of shareholders sued the board for allegedly failing to take action to prevent serious failings and illegalities since the 1990s, including manufacturing problems, bribing officials, covering up adverse effects and misleading marketing for unapproved uses. In 2012, Johnson and Johnson proposed a settlement with the shareholders, whereby the company would institute new oversight, quality and compliance procedures binding for five years.

Illegal marketing of Risperdal

In November 2013, Johnson & Johnson agreed to pay $2.2 billion to resolve criminal and civil liability arising from allegations relating to Risperdal, Invega, and Natrecor, including promotion for uses not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and payment of kickbacks to physicians and to long-term care pharmacy providers. The settlement amount includes criminal fines and forfeiture totaling $485 million and civil settlements with the federal government and states totaling $1.72 billion. States that have awarded damages include Texas ($158 million), South Carolina ($327 million), Louisiana ($258 million), and Arkansas ($1.2 billion).

In 2010, the United States Department of Justice joined a whistleblowers suit accusing the company of illegally marketing Risperdal through Omnicare, the largest company supplying pharmaceuticals to nursing homes. The allegations include that J&J were warned by the FDA to not promote Risperdal as effective and safe for elderly patients, but it did so, and that it paid Omnicare to promote the drug to care home physicians. The settlement was finalized on November 4, 2013, with J&J agreeing to pay a penalty of around $2.2 billion, "including criminal fines and forfeiture totaling $485 million and civil settlements with the federal government and states totaling $1.72 billion".

Johnson & Johnson has also been subject to congressional investigations related to payments given to psychiatrists to promote its products and ghost write articles, notably Joseph Biederman and his pediatric bipolar disorder research unit.

Foreign bribery

In 2011, J&J settled litigation brought by the US Securities and Exchange Commission under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and paid around $70M in disgorgement and fines. J&J's employees had given kickbacks and bribes to doctors in Greece, Poland, and Romania to obtain business selling drugs and medical devices and had bribed officials in Iraq to win contracts under the Oil for Food program. J&J fully cooperated with the investigation once the problems came to light.

Consumer fraud settlements

In May 2017, J&J reached an agreement to pay $33 million to several states to settle consumer fraud allegations in some of the company's over-the-counter drugs.

Use of the Red Cross symbol

Johnson & Johnson registered the Red Cross as a U.S. trademark for "medicinal and surgical plasters" in 1905 and has used the design since 1887. The Geneva Conventions, which reserved the Red Cross emblem for specific uses, were first approved in 1864 and ratified by the United States in 1882. However, the emblem was not protected by U.S. law for the use of the American Red Cross (ARC) and the U.S. military until after Johnson & Johnson had obtained its trademark. A clause in this law (now 18 U.S.C. 706) permits this pre-existing use of the Red Cross to continue.

A declaration made by the U.S. upon its ratification of the 1949 Geneva Conventions includes a reservation that pre-1905 U.S. domestic uses of the Red Cross, such as Johnson & Johnson's, would remain lawful as long as the cross is not used on "aircraft, vessels, vehicles, buildings or other structures, or upon the ground", i.e., uses which could be confused with its military uses. This means that the U.S. did not agree to any interpretation of the 1949 Geneva Conventions that would overrule Johnson & Johnson's trademark. The American Red Cross continues to recognize the validity of Johnson & Johnson's trademark.

In August 2007, Johnson & Johnson filed a lawsuit against the American Red Cross, demanding that the charity halt the use of the red cross symbol on products it sells to the public, though the company takes no issue with the charity's use of the mark for nonprofit purposes. In May 2008, the judge in the case dismissed most of Johnson & Johnson's claims, and, a month later, the two organizations settled the case, allowing both parties to use the symbol.

Boston Scientific lawsuits

Beginning in 2003, Johnson & Johnson and Boston Scientific were involved in a series of patent disputes involving coronary stents and related medical devices. In September 2009, Boston Scientific agreed to pay Johnson & Johnson $716 million to settle 14 patent-infringement lawsuits, followed by a $1.73 billion settlement of three additional stent patent disputes in February 2010.

Separately, Johnson & Johnson sued Guidant and Abbott Laboratories in 2006, alleging that Guidant had breached its merger agreement with Johnson & Johnson before being acquired by Boston Scientific. The case went to trial in 2014, with Johnson & Johnson seeking more than $5 billion in damages and interest. In February 2015, Boston Scientific agreed to pay Johnson & Johnson $600 million to settle the lawsuit, without admitting liability on Guidant's behalf, and Johnson & Johnson agreed to permanently dismiss the case.

Humira patent-infringement case against Abbott

In 2007, Johnson & Johnson sued Abbott Laboratories over the development and sale of Humira, claiming Abbott used technology licensed exclusively to Johnson & Johnson's Centocor division. Johnson & Johnson won the court case, and in 2009 Abbott was ordered to pay Johnson & Johnson $1.17 billion in lost revenues and $504 million in royalties. The judge also added $175.6 million in interest to bring the total to $1.84 billion, at the time the largest patent-infringement award in U.S. history. In 2010, Abbott appealed the verdict and in 2011, it won the appeal. The United States Supreme Court elected not to hear the case.

Vaginal mesh implants

Tens of thousands of women worldwide have taken legal action against Johnson & Johnson after suffering serious complications following a vaginal mesh implant procedure. In Australia, more than 700 women began a class action against the company in the Federal Court of Australia in 2017, telling the court they "suffered irreparable, debilitating pain after the devices began to erode into surrounding tissue and organs, causing infections and complications". The class action alleged that Johnson & Johnson, which "aggressively marketed" the implants "failed to properly warn patients and surgeons of the risk, or test the devices adequately". Emails between executives show the company was aware of the risks in 2005 but still went ahead and made the product available. In November 2019 the Federal Court of Australia found Johnson & Johnson negligent. The judgment was appealed, with the appeals court upholding all findings of Justice Anna Katzmann. Ethicon then sought a High Court decision but this was not permitted by the High Court of Australia. Subsequently (September 2022) a A$300,000,000 compensation agreement was reached between Shine Lawyers and J&J but this agreement remains subject to approval by the Federal Court of Australia.

In 2016, California and Washington filed a lawsuit against the company, accusing it of deception. In October 2019, the company and its subsidiary, Ethicon, reached a settlement with 41 states and the District of Columbia, with no admission of liability, in a suit alleging deceptive marketing of transvaginal surgical-mesh devices. The suit also alleges that the company failed to disclose risks associated with the product, which J&J pulled from the US market in 2012. The amount settled in the suit was about $117 million.

Cancer links to talc-based baby powder

Johnson & Johnson has been the subject of over 60,000 lawsuits claiming that its baby powder causes ovarian cancer. The lawsuits focus on claims that the talc-based powder is contaminated with asbestos, a known carcinogen commonly found in places where talc is mined.

In 2016, J&J was ordered to pay $72 million in damages to the family of Jacqueline Fox, a 62-year-old woman who died of ovarian cancer in 2015. The company said it would appeal. A year later, over 1,000 U.S. women had sued J&J for covering up the possible cancer risk from its Baby Powder product. The company says that adults use 70% of its Baby Powder. Later that year, a California jury ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $417 million to a woman who claimed she developed ovarian cancer after using the company's talc-based products like Johnson's Baby Powder for feminine hygiene. The verdict included $70 million in compensatory damages and $347 million in punitive damages. J&J said it would appeal the verdict. The Missouri Eastern District appeals court later negated a $72 million jury verdict in the Jacqueline Fox lawsuit, ruling it lacked jurisdiction in Missouri because of a U.S. Supreme Court decision that imposed limits on where injury lawsuit can be filed. Subsequently, this ruling killed three other recent St. Louis jury verdicts of more than $200 million combined. Fox, 62, of Birmingham, Alabama, died in 2015, about four months before her trial was held in St. Louis Circuit Court. She was among 65 plaintiffs, of whom only two were from Missouri.

A St. Louis jury awarded nearly $4.7 billion in damages to 22 women and their families in 2018 after they claimed that asbestos in Johnson & Johnson talcum powder caused their ovarian cancer. In August, J&J said that it removed several chemicals from baby powder products and re-engineered them to make consumers more confident that products were safer for children. The company was forced to release internal documents with 11,700 people suing J&J over cancers allegedly caused by baby powder. The documents showed that the company had known about asbestos contamination since at least as early as 1971 and had spent decades finding ways to conceal the evidence from the public.

The company lost its request to reverse a jury verdict that ruled in favor of the accusers, which required the company to pay $4.14 billion in punitive damages and $550 million in compensatory damages. A 2003 meta-analysis involving 11,933 subjects found a 33% relative risk increase of ovarian cancer for regular genital talc use, increased from a baseline of 0.0121% to 0.0161%. Two more studies over the next twelve years, which also relied on self-reporting, had similar results; however, none of the three studies showed a relationship between how long someone used talc and how much their cancer risk increased, which is expected in experiments with carcinogens and other toxic substances (see dose–response relationship).

Opioid epidemic

By 2018, the company had become embroiled in the opioid epidemic in the United States and had become a target of lawsuits.

In Idaho, J&J is part of a lawsuit accusing the company for being partially to blame for opioid-related overdose deaths. The first major trial began in Oklahoma in May 2019. On August 26, 2019, the Oklahoma judge ordered J&J to pay $572 million for its part in the opioid crisis, and in October J&J paid $20.4 million to two Ohio counties fighting the opioid epidemic. In January 2022, Johnson & Johnson agreed to pay up to $5 billion as part of a $26 billion settlement which included McKesson, AmerisourceBergen, and Cardinal Health. Had the states gone to court, the companies could have faced up to $95 billion in penalties.

In October 2019, the company agreed to a settlement of $20.4 million with northeastern Ohio's most populous counties of Cuyahoga (containing Cleveland) and Summit (Akron). The settlement allows the company avoidance of a trial accusing J&J and many other pharmaceutical manufacturers of helping to spark the US opioid epidemic. The trial was thought to be an indicator for thousands of opioid-related lawsuits against many drug manufacturers. The arrangement, which contains no admission of liability by the company, provides the counties $10 million in cash, $5 million for legal expenses and $5.4 million in contributions to opioid-related nonprofit organizations in the counties.