129 0 Kommentare Johnson & Johnson Announces Plan by its Subsidiary, LLT Management LLC, to Resolve All Current and Future Ovarian Cancer Talc Claims Through a Consensual “Prepackaged” Reorganization - Seite 2

The Plan should be readily confirmed, as it is in the best interests of the ovarian claimants:

The Plan commits the Company to pay ovarian claimants a present value of approximately $6.475 billion to be paid over 25 years, which is a far better recovery than the claimants stand to recover at trial.
Most ovarian claimants have not recovered and will not recover anything at trial. Indeed, the Company has prevailed in approximately 95% of ovarian cases tried to date, including every ovarian case tried over the last six years. In addition, based upon the historical run rate, it would take decades to litigate the remaining cases, and therefore, most claimants will never have “their day in court.”
Further, on March 27, 2024, the Judge presiding over the multi-district litigation (MDL) – where 93% of the ovarian claims are filed – agreed to reconsider the scientific validity of the opinions offered by plaintiffs’ experts in a Daubert hearing, pursuant to the rigorous review required by the new Federal Rules of Evidence 702. If the opinions fail that review, which the Company expects they will, the ovarian claims should be dismissed.
In light of those risks, counsel representing the overwhelming majority of current ovarian claimants assisted in the development and support the Plan.

The Plan reflects a substantial commitment to resolve the talc claims:

In its July 2023 decision dismissing LLT’s prior bankruptcy case, the New Jersey Bankruptcy Court stated that the Company and LLT had made “remarkable progress” towards “a fair, efficient and expeditious settlement” for all claimants and “strongly encouraged” the pursuit of a comprehensive resolution through another bankruptcy.
The Company and LLT followed that directive, and the Plan proposed by LLT, along with the settlement of the mesothelioma, State consumer protection claims, and disputes with Imerys and Cyprus, is the culmination of those efforts.
To account for these settlements and the comprehensive resolution of the ovarian claims through the Plan, the Company recorded an incremental charge of approximately $2.7 billion in the first quarter of 2024, for a total reserve of approximately $11.0 billion (or $13.7 billion nominal payable over 25 years).