Press Releases

Press Release : Contaminated Baby Bath Products

March 23, 2009

CHICAGO - Some of the nation's largest child-product companies including Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), Proctor and Gamble (NYSE:PG) and Kimberly Clark (NYSE:KMB) are the target of a nationwide class-action lawsuit by parents after a study revealed that many of the companies' products including baby shampoo and lotions contain probable cancer-causing chemicals including formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane.

The suit, filed March 19 in U.S. District Court in Chicago, will represent parents or other consumers who purchased any of an extensive list of products, if the court certifies the action.

The findings were part of a study conducted by nonprofit, The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, which tested commonly used baby products and found alarmingly high amounts of carcinogens, with 61 percent of the tested products containing both formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane and 82 percent containing formaldehyde at levels of at least 54 parts per million.

Chicago-area residents Gabrielle Clow, parent of two young children, and Channing Hess, parent of three children became concerned when they learned of the study's findings and filed the suit.

"Parents are frightened by these findings, and rightly so," said Steve Berman, attorney representing the plaintiffs and managing partner of Seattle-based Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro. "I can't imagine any parent covering their infant with a baby lotion that lists 'formaldehyde' on the label along with 'natural fragrance.'

Both parents use a variety of the products in question and say they would have never selected them had they known the potential risk. None of the manufacturers list the probable cancer-causing chemical as ingredients on product labels.

According to the report, manufacturers say the levels of the potentially cancer-causing toxins are so small that they do not pose a risk to the public, and are within government guidelines.

"What the industry doesn't recognize is that parents may use any number of these products with their kids, and we are concerned that the cumulative effect of the toxins could pose a health risk," Berman noted.

The study states that the probable carcinogenic ingredients are not added in manufacturing, but likely occur as the ingredients break down over time.

Berman noted that the manufacturers had an obligation to warn consumers to allow them to make an informed decision.

The defendants include Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies, Gerber Products Company, The Proctor and Gamble Company, Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Expanscience Laboratories Inc. doing business as Mustela, and Limited Brands Inc. The suit claims the defendants breached implied warranties of merchantability and fitness; acted in violation of product liability laws; were negligent in design, manufacture and marketing of the products, and violated various unfair and deceptive trade practice acts.

The suit calls for medical monitoring of children and others who used the product to measure the long-term health risks from exposure to the potential carcinogens.

A complete list of the products and manufacturers in question and links to the report's findings can be found at www.hbsslaw.com.

About Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro
Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro is based in Seattle with offices in Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Francisco and New York. Since the firm's founding in 1993, it has developed a nationally recognized practice in class action and complex litigation. Among recent successes, HBSS has negotiated a pending $300 million settlement as lead counsel in the DRAM memory antitrust litigation; a $340 million recovery on behalf of Enron employees which is awaiting distribution; a $150 million settlement involving charges of illegally inflated charges for the drug Lupron, and served as co-counsel on the Visa/Mastercard litigation which resulted in a $3 billion settlement, the largest anti-trust settlement to date. HBSS also served as counsel in a $850 million settlement in the Washington Public Power Supply litigation and represented Washington and 12 other states in lawsuits against the tobacco industry that resulted in the largest settlement in the history of litigation. For a complete listing of HBSS cases, visit www.hbsslaw.com.

Mark Firmani
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E-mail: Mark Firmani