Defendants Remove Talcum Powder Suit, Say In-State Defendant Rite Aid Fraudulently Joined

PHILADELPHIA –– Defendants named in a talcum powder lawsuit filed in Philadelphia have removed the case, saying that the plaintiffs have no chance of recovery against Rite Aid, a defendant the removing parties said was fraudulently joined.

The Johnson & Johnson defendants removed the case to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on Oct. 7.

In their complaint, plaintiffs Donna and Clyde Mason stated that Donna Mason’s ovarian cancer was caused by the use of the defendants’ Baby Powder and Shower-to-Shower talcum powder products.

“Defendants concealed and continue to conceal their knowledge of the product’s unreasonably …