A South Carolina state court jury returned a $29.14 million verdict in a lawsuit filed by a woman claiming she developed fatal cancer from exposure to asbestos in cosmetic talc products, and the full trial was recorded gavel-to-gavel by Courtroom View Network.
The Richland County jury found talc supplier Whittaker Clark & Daniels liable for plaintiff Sarah Plants mesothelioma - a form of a cancer frequently associated with asbestos exposure - while clearing talc manufacturer IMI Fabi of any responsibility for Plants illness.
The trial also included cosmetics company Mary Kay and makeup pigment company Color Techniques when attorneys delivered openings statements on February 23, however both companies were no longer active defendants when the case went to the jury after reaching confidential settlements with the plaintiff.
The trial is believed to be the first involving cosmetic talc asbestos claims against Mary Kay, according to Plants attorney Jessica Dean of Dean Omar Branham Shirley, the Texas-based firm that represented Plant and her family.