J&J Baby Powder Bankruptcy Brings 50 Angry Lawyers to Charlotte

For dozens of lawyers representing people who say Johnson & Johnson’s baby powder made them sick, the federal courthouse in Charlotte, North Carolina, was the last place they wanted to be.

The consumer products giant gave them no choice by putting a sliver of its sprawling company into bankruptcy protection there, using a controversial legal tactic known as the Texas Two-Step as a shield from victims’ claims amounting to more than $2 billion.

Lawyers for those who allegedly got ill from asbestos and other substances in J&J’s talc baby powder argue bankruptcy court is the wrong place to wage this ...