The $60M NEC Setback, Talc Dismissal Tactics, and AFFF Docket Cleanup

In this week's episode of Tort Talk, host Marc Rioux is joined by mass tort powerhouse Joseph Fantini of Rosen Injury Lawyers to break down a rapid-fire series of major developments across the consolidated litigation landscape. (Co-host Jon Robinson is currently out on paternity leave but returns soon!) First, we tackle the heartbreaking setback out of Illinois, where an appellate court officially overturned a $60 million NEC (Necrotizing Enterocolitis) infant formula verdict. Joe breaks down the specific judicial errors regarding jury instructions and executive net-worth evidence that triggered the retrial order, and looks ahead to the upcoming MDL bellwethers scheduled for August and November. Next, we shift to the massive J&J Talcum Powder MDL. Emboldened by a recent California defense verdict, Johnson & Johnson is making a regular habit of defense overreach, this time filing a motion to dismiss the entire litigation with prejudice following the withdrawal of two plaintiffs' experts. Hear why the plaintiffs' steering committee isn't sweating this "tactical reach" and how alternative expert pools keep the decade-long litigation firmly on the tracks. We also dive deep into the sudden flurry of activity in the AFFF (PFAS) individual personal injury docket. The defense is launching a massive "docket cleanup" campaign, seeking to eliminate over 10,000 cases due to missing plaintiff fact sheets, dual-representation errors, and unverified medical records. Is this aggressive inventory purging bad news, or is it a classic indicator that corporate defendants are aggressively calculating values for a looming global settlement? Finally, we look international. With the UK officially passing a sweeping social media ban for children under 16 starting in 2027, the litigation momentum against Big Tech continues to accelerate. From state laws to international bans and upcoming Hollywood whistle-blower films, we dissect how a multi-pronged approach is forcing platforms like Instagram to roll out parental controls they never would have offered willingly. Don't forget to like, subscribe, and drop your questions in the comments below, we monitor them weekly! Chapters: 0:00 - Introduction 1:10 - NEC Verdict Overturned: The Illinois Appellate Ruling Breakdown 2:45 - Upcoming NEC MDL Bellwether Trial Dates 3:00 - J&J Talcum Powder: The Fight Against Total MDL Dismissal 4:25 - Why Do Mass Tort Expert Witnesses Withdraw? 5:15 - AFFF Litigation: The 10,000-Case "Docket Cleanup" Explained 6:45 - Is Defense Inventory Auditing a Sign of an Impending AFFF Settlement? 7:30 - Will AFFF Re-enter the Mass Tort Power Rankings? 8:10 - International Law: The UK’s Under-16 Social Media Ban & Big Tech Pressures 10:00 - Outro & How to Stay Updated #MassTorts #NECLitigation #TalcumPowderLawsuit #AFFF #PFAS #SocialMediaAddiction #PersonalInjuryLawyer #TortTalk #LawFirmGrowth #BellwetherTrial About The Jon & Marc Podcast. The Jon & Marc Podcast is for lawyers who care about growth and the bottom line. Jon and Marc interview leaders in plaintiff law to break down how major cases are built, how firms scale, and how strategy plays out behind the scenes. If you want to understand how the biggest players in the space think and operate, you’re in the right place. New episodes every week.