$65.5 Million Verdict for Minnesota Mother With Mesothelioma From J&J Baby Powder
Won by Sieben Alexander.
A Ramsey County jury awarded $65.5 million to Anna Jean Houghton Carley, a 37-year-old mother of three diagnosed with peritoneal mesothelioma after childhood exposure to Johnson and Johnson Baby Powder, in what attorneys described as the largest asbestos verdict in Minnesota history.
What happened
Anna Jean Houghton Carley was 37 years old and the mother of three children when she received a diagnosis of peritoneal mesothelioma in 2025. The disease, an aggressive cancer of the abdominal lining, is closely associated with asbestos exposure. Her family had used Johnson and Johnson Baby Powder on her throughout her childhood, a product J&J pulled from U.S. shelves in 2020 after years of litigation over asbestos contamination.
Carley filed suit in Ramsey County District Court in St. Paul, arguing that Johnson and Johnson knew its talc-based products could be contaminated with asbestos and continued to sell and market them anyway. After 13 days of testimony, a six-person jury deliberated for five hours before returning its verdict on December 19, 2025.
The jury awarded $5.5 million for past medical and personal damages, $32.5 million for future medical and personal damages, and $27.5 million to her husband for loss of companionship. The total of $65.5 million was entirely compensatory. The jury found the baby powder defective and unreasonably dangerous.
Chad Alexander of Sieben Alexander, P.A. served as co-counsel on the trial team alongside lead trial counsel Ben Braly and attorneys Aaron Chapman, Laurel Halbany, and Daniel Liberio of Dean Omar Branham Shirley. The plaintiff's legal team characterized the verdict as 'the largest asbestos-related verdict in the history of the state of Minnesota.'
Johnson and Johnson announced it would appeal the decision. As of the verdict date, no reduction had been entered by the court.
Sources
This account is drawn from contemporaneous public reporting and the court record.
- 1.DOBS Legal: Minnesota Jury Delivers $65.5 Million History-Making Verdict Against Johnson and Johnson·Archived copy
- 2.Fortune: Johnson and Johnson hit with $65.5 million asbestos-talcum powder verdict in Minnesota·Archived copy
- 3.Texas Lawbook: Dallas-Based Firm Secures $65.5M Verdict Against J&J in Minnesota·Archived copy
- 4.NBC News: Johnson and Johnson owes $65.5 million to a woman with cancer who used talcum powder·Archived copy
- 5.Star Tribune: Minnesota woman wins $65 million lawsuit over asbestos in talc products·Archived copy
More proven verdicts from Sieben Alexander
All Sieben Alexander proven verdicts →A Minnesota jury awarded $10.2 million to Daniel Heyer, diagnosed with mesothelioma at 43 after decades of exposure to store-brand talc body powders sold under Target, Walmart, and Walgreens labels, finding all five defendant manufacturers liable for producing defective and unreasonably dangerous products.
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