The US Supreme Court rejected a Johnson & Johnson appeal, leaving intact a $302 million award against the company for misrepresenting the risks of vaginal-mesh implants to California consumers.
The rebuff is a victory for California, the first state to go to trial against the company after thousands of U.S. women sued and some products were recalled. The Supreme Court made no comment in turning away the appeal by J&J and its Ethicon unit.
California Appeals Court Says J&J Must Pay $302M in Pelvic Mesh Case
J&J contended the company wasn’t given fair notice that it could face such steep penalties for using marketing materials it says weren’t proven to have reached consumers.
Business groups including the US Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers backed the appeal, saying states are abusing their unfair competition laws to impose millions of dollars in penalties for practices that don’t cause any harm.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta urged the Supreme Court to reject the appeal. State officials said the company intentionally concealed serious risk and complication information while mounting an aggressive marketing campaign.
The company has said it responsibly communicated the risks and benefits of its mesh products to both doctors and patients.
J&J at one point faced more than 100,000 lawsuits over the products, which were intended to bolster sagging organs or treat incontinence in women. Many of those cases have been settled.
J&J withdrew some of its vaginal-mesh lines from the market in 2012 after facing complaints by thousands of women that the products — threaded into place through incisions in the vagina — eroded over time, causing pain and injuries.
The company has settled claims by 45 other states and the District of Columbia. The company said in October that a trial in a lawsuit by Kentucky is set to start in May.
A California state judge in San Diego originally awarded $344 million before an appeals court cut $42 million from the sum.
The case is Johnson & Johnson v. California, .
Photo: The Johnson & Johnson logo displayed outside the company’s headquarters in New Brunswick, New Jersey. (Bloomberg)
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