We have won more than $40 billion in jury verdicts and settlements and have been in business for almost 70 years.
The hair relaxer lawsuits claim that exposure to the chemicals in these products caused people to develop uterine or ovarian cancer.
We are representing individuals who developed uterine or ovarian cancer after using chemical hair straighteners and relaxer products.
Attorney at our law firm have been appointed to the Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee by the judge overseeing the federal lawsuits involving hair relaxers. This means that we are directly involved in the national investigation and discovery that will hopefully result in a positive outcome for the individuals injured by this product.
Since 1955, we have fought for the rights of individuals injured by defective products. We take on large corporations with a strong track record of getting results for our clients. Let us fight for you.
Contact us today for a free, no-obligation consultation about your potential right to recover compensation for injuries you sustained from your hair relaxer use: Call (800) 277-1193 or complete a short Free Evaluation Form.
On October 21, 2022, a Missouri woman, Jenny Mitchell sued L’Oreal USA Products Inc., Strength of Nature Global, Soft Sheen/Carson Inc., Soft Sheen Carson Inc., Dabur International Ltd, Dabur USA Inc., and Namaste Laboratories, LLC, alleging that her use of the cosmetic companies’ hair-straightening products caused her to develop uterine cancer. The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Chicago.
According to the Complaint, the Defendants’ products contain phthalates and other endocrine-disrupting chemicals, and Mitchell’s regular and prolonged exposure to these chemicals resulted in her uterine cancer diagnosis.
Mitchell began using these hair-relaxing products in 2000 when she was 10 years old. She was diagnosed with uterine cancer in 2018 when she was 28 years old. She underwent a full hysterectomy that same year. The Complaint states Mitchell can no longer have children and has suffered “extreme pain and suffering and extreme emotional distress.”
Which Hair Straightener and Relaxer Products are Named in the Lawsuit?
Several allegedly defective products are mentioned in the Complaint, including:
Profiting from Marketing and Packaging that Pressures Consumers into Accepting a Manufactured Standard of Beauty
The Complaint devotes several pages to the defendants’ efforts to market their hair straighteners and relaxers. These efforts benefitted from centuries-old messaging that straighter and less kinky hair would afford Black men and women better lives as slaves. Today’s marketing of hair relaxer products reinforces these “Eurocentric standards of beauty,” the complaint states.
The Defendants produce, package, market, and sell a broad range of hair straightener and relaxer products, some of which target young Black girls. The companies allegedly knew their products were harmful since at least 2015 but failed to warn consumers of the health risks.
May 2024
Phase II defendants were added to the Hair Relaxer MDL. The new list includes:
March 2024
Defendant L’Oreal lost in a motion plaintiffs filed to compele discovery from several defendants’ foreign affiliates, which included L’Oreal S.A. The Court acknowledged the the tight corporate connection between the two entities and granted plaintiffs’ discovery motion, but certain document types were exempted.
February 2024
January closed with the addition of new cases that brought the totla number of pending cases in the MDL to 8,217.
January 2024
This month marked the scheduling of hair relaxer bellwether trials, with the first trial set for November 3, 2025. The following trial is schedule for February 2, 2026. As bellwethers, the outcomes of these trials help both sides understand how juries will respond to arguments and presented evidence. This, in turn, can influence settlement negotiations for the remaining cases in the multidistrict litigation.
December 2023
Currently, 7,984 hair relaxer lawsuits are pending in the MDL.
November 2023
Leadership in the Hair Relaxers MDL requested 11% for the plaintiff benefit fund. This amount represents how much leadership attorneys would receive from a plaintiff’s lawyer’s fee.
October 2023
The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) proposed a ban on the use of formaldehyde in all chemical hair relaxer products. According to the FDA, formaldehyde is linked to leukemia and other cancers. It is not one of the chemicals that have been associated with uterine cancer or ovarian cancer.
September 2023
In response to an explosion of new case filings, Judge Rowland issues Case Management Order No. 9, in which she presents a procedure for Plaintiffs who are filling out Short Form Complaints.
August 2023
Judge Rowland adopted an official Short Form Complaint for all hair relaxer plaintiffs going forward. New plaintiffs can file directly in the class action MDL. The order will make the judicial process more efficient and help grow the number of new case filings. All parties can now reference a Master Complaint in their lawsuits.
July 2023
Defendants in the chemical hair straightener lawsuits filed a motion to bifurcate all discovery not related to general causation (in this case, general causation refers to whether the chemicals in hair relaxers have the potential to cause harm on a broader scale). If the judge agrees, discovery will commence with a focus on whether hair relaxers cause cancer. Bifurcation would significantly slow down any resolution of this litigation.
May 2023
Judge Rowland issued an order regarding the procedure for filing in the Hair Relaxer class action MDL. The order specifies that new cases must be filed separately in the Northern District of Illinois. To get a case number, complainants must mention Judge Mary Rowland, as well as the master docket number 23 CV 0818 on the cover sheet and must adhere to the format and requirements specified in the Direct Filing Order and Case Management Order No. 2.
April 2023
Judge Rowland issued her Order Appointing Plaintiffs’ Leadership Development Committee (LDC). LPR Attorney Chelsie Green was appointed to the LDC for Hair Relaxer MDL No. 3060.
On April 27, 0223, Boston University School of Public Health announced a study linking hair relaxer use to a reduced ability to conceive.
March 2023
The first status conference in the hair relaxer class action MDL took place on March 2, 2023. Judge Rowland issued her initial Case Management Order, indicating a decision to have a single steering committee.
Judge Rowland appointed several attorneys to the Hair Relaxer MDL leadership. Among those named, LPR Attorney Brian Barr was appointed to the Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee (PEC) for the Hair Relaxer litigation.
The Plaintiffs Steering Committee filed a claim in the Revlon bankruptcy proceeding on behalf of all plaintiffs who used the cosmetic company’s products. This claim will factor into Revlon’s bankruptcy plan, so these plaintiffs receive compensation.
February 2023
The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation centralized all chemical hair relaxer lawsuits currently pending in federal courts into a new class action MDL (IN RE: HAIR RELAXER MARKETING, SALES PRACTICES, AND PRODUCTS LIABILITY LITIGATION, MDL No. 3060). Around 60 cases were transferred to the Northern District of Illinois and assigned to Judge Mary Rowland.
A settlement has not yet been reached in the hair straightener cancer lawsuits. However, the sheer volume of consumers who have likely been affected by defective hair straightening and relaxer products makes it likely that many more cases will come forward.
If you developed uterine or ovarian cancer from regular, prolonged use of hair straighteners and/or relaxers, our lawyers will work to recover your losses, including:
If your loved one died from uterine cancer or ovarian cancer after regular, prolonged use of these types of products, we will file a wrongful death action on their behalf. Our attorneys will represent you in this effort.
As cosmetic products, chemical hair relaxants and straighteners do not require approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) before they go to market. However, the Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) and Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (FPLA) present laws that apply to cosmetic products marketed in the U.S.
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act
Under the FD&C Act, companies cannot market products that are “adulterated” or “misbranded.” Adulterated products include those with substances that cause injury to the user or are contained in a manner that makes the product harmful to health. Misbranded products include those that have been improperly labeled or deceptively packaged.
Cosmetic companies do not have to submit safety data to the FDA, but it is against the law for these companies to put harmful ingredients in their products.
Fair Packaging and Labeling Act of 1966
This consumer protection legislation directs the FDA and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to regulate product manufacturers’ truthful disclosure of information on labels and packages, including the contents, commodity, and name and place of businesses of the product’s manufacturer, packer, or distributor.
Studies have shown that up to 90% of Black and Brown women have used hair relaxants or straighteners. Black women tend to begin using the products at younger ages and to use them more frequently than people of other races. They also tend to use multiple products, which further increases their exposure to the cancer-causing chemicals inside them.
America’s civil justice system paves a way for holding accountable any corporation that profits from products they know are defective, harmful, and cause injury. Since 1955, our law firm has taken on these corporations, forcing them to pay for damages their victims have incurred because of these defective products. Examples of some of our current investigations and lawsuits include:
We have handled more than 100,000 personal injury claims and achieved over $30 billion in verdicts and settlements, with more than 150 verdicts in the amount of at least $1 million. Thousands of mass tort attorneys attend our semi-annual Mass Torts Made Perfect seminar to learn from us how to handle cases like these.
Numerous studies bring important evidence to support claims that chemical hair straighteners cause uterine and ovarian cancer.
On October 17, 2022, this National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) study revealed that women who used chemical hair straighteners suffered a higher rate of uterine cancer compared to individuals who did not use these products. The study involved 33,497 U.S. women ages 35-74. The women were followed on average for nearly 11 years. During this period, 378 uterine cancer cases were diagnosed. Women who used hair straightening products more than four times in the year prior to enrollment were twice as likely to develop uterine cancer compared with the women who did not use the products. National Institutes of Health (NIH)
On October 5, 2021, the journal Carcinogenesis published results from a study of 40,559 women. Participants completed questionnaires on hair product use, including straighteners/relaxers. “Over a mean follow-up of 10 years, 241 women were diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Frequent use (>4 times/year) of straighteners/relaxers or pressing products in the year prior to enrollment was associated with an increased risk of ovarian cancer (HR = 2.19, 95% CI: 1.12-4.27),” the authors reported. Carcinogenesis
The Endocrine Society defines endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) as substances that interfere with the normal function of the human endocrine systems. A normally functioning endocrine system helps regulate the body’s healthy development and function. By disrupting a variety of hormones, EDCs throw off the body’s natural hormonal production and degradation. This can cause a wide variety of health problems, including:
Phthalates are one type of EDC used in several haircare manufacturers’ hair straightening and relaxing products. Uterine cancer and other medical conditions have been linked to these chemicals.
Uterine cancer originates as healthy cells in the uterus (cervix, isthmus, fundus) change, grow uncontrollably, and form a tumor, according to the American Society of Clinical Oncology.
Types of Uterine Cancer
There are two types of uterine cancer:
Signs and Symptoms of Uterine Cancer
Uterine cancer can manifest with several changes you can either feel or have measured:
If you experience the above symptoms or signs, talk to your medical provider immediately to determine if you have uterine cancer.
Treatment for Uterine Cancer
Therapies and treatments for uterine cancer can include:
Ovarian cancer is cancer that originates in the cells of the ovary, fallopian tube, or peritoneum, according to American Society of Clinical Oncology.
Types of Ovarian Cancer
There are several types of ovarian cancer:
Signs and Symptoms of Ovarian Cancer
The following changes could signal a person has developed ovarian cancer:
If you experience the above symptoms or signs, talk to your medical provider immediately about an ovarian cancer screening.
Treatment for Ovarian Cancer
Therapies and treatments for ovarian cancer can include:
When corporations put profit before safety, Levin Papantonio Rafferty is here to protect the innocent people injured by this negligence.
If your regular, prolonged use of hair straightening products resulted in your diagnosis of uterine or ovarian cancer, we will fight for your right to recover damages.
Our lawyers will work hard to get you the compensation you deserve. Call us today at (800) 277-1193 for a free consultation or simply complete our Free & Confidential Hair Straightener and Relaxer Cancer Evaluation Form.
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