In July 2017, plaintiff Teresa Leavitt, 51, a physiatrist, was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a fatal form of cancer associated with asbestos exposure. Leavitt claimed that she was exposed to Johnson’s Baby Powder since she was an infant and that she continued to use it during her teenage and adult years as a face powder and dry shampoo. She alleged that the product contained asbestos and that her cancer was a result of her exposure to the asbestos in the talc product. Leavitt sued the manufacturers of the baby powder, Johnson & Johnson and Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc., and the suppliers of the talc to the Johnson & Johnson entities, Cyprus Amax Minerals Co., Cyprus Mines Corp., Imerys Talc America Inc., Imerys Talc Vermont Inc. and Imerys USA Inc. Delta Lines Inc., a shipping company, was originally named as a defendant, but it was ultimately removed and not a part of the case. Imerys Talc America and Imerys Talc Vermont were also removed from the case due to them filing for bankruptcy, and Imerys USA was dismissed based on a lack of jurisdiction. In addition, Cyprus Amax Minerals was dismissed from the case. Thus, the matter continued against Johnson & Johnson, Johnson & Johnson Consumer and Cyprus Mines. Plaintiff’s counsel contended that internal Johnson & Johnson documents indicated that its officials knew since the 1950s that talc mined in places such as Vermont and Italy contained trace amounts of asbestos. Counsel contended that neither Johnson & Johnson nor Cyprus alerted consumers about the presence of asbestos in the products or the dangers of exposure to their products. Defense counsel argued that studies have shown that its products did not contain asbestos., Leavitt was diagnosed with mesothelioma in July 2017. She underwent multiple courses of chemotherapy, but her doctors stated that her mesothelioma is advanced and that she is not expected to live beyond 2020. Leavitt’s pathology expert testified that recent tests of Leavitt’s lung tissue showed the same type of asbestos as that found in Johnson’s Baby Powder. Leavitt’s experts also testified that this specific type of asbestos was non-commercial, which makes it unlikely that Leavitt was exposed to sources outside of Johnson’s Baby Powder. Leavitt’s husband, Dean McElroy, presented a derivative claim, seeking recovery for his loss of consortium. Defense counsel argued that there was no credible evidence that Johnson’s Baby Powder caused Leavitt’s mesothelioma and that evidence of talc in Leavitt’s tissue could have come from numerous sources.