The Lanier Law Firm’s courtroom victory that saw $4.69 billion awarded to 22 ovarian cancer victims and their families has been named the No.1 Most Impressive Plaintiff Verdict of 2018 by Courtroom View Network.
The jury verdict came after six weeks of testimony in state district court in St. Louis. The trial marked the first time any jury had heard evidence that Johnson & Johnson’s talcum powder products are contaminated with asbestos, and that decades of daily use contributed to the ovarian cancer diagnoses.
“Going into this trial Mark Lanier already had a well-established reputation as a giant killer,” noted the CVN announcement. “The landmark verdict in this case demonstrated why that fearsome reputation is warranted.”
Calling the trial a “legal high wire act”, CVN highlighted Mr. Lanier’s practice of conducting the examination and cross-examination of each witness personally, while “taking on a phalanx of top-flight attorneys representing J&J.”
Many of the women took the stand at trial to talk about their use of the products and how ovarian cancer affected their quality of life. Six of the plaintiffs were deceased and were represented at trial by husbands and family members.
In addition to Mr. Lanier, the trial team included attorneys Lee Cirsch, Rachel Lanier, Dr. Robert Leone, Michael Akselrud, and Monica Cooper, while co-counsel Eric D.Holland of the Holland Law Firm in St. Louis, Missouri, was also integrally involved in the trial.
