J&J to appeal $8b punitive damages

Johnson & Johnson, one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies, said it will appeal against a Philadelphia jury's awarding of $8 billion in punitive damages stemming from the use of an antipsychotic drug the plaintiff's attorneys said produced abnormal growth of female-like breast tissue in boys.

It is the largest award to date among about 13,000 lawsuits against J&J alleging that Risperdal caused a condition in males known as gynecomastia. Attorneys for a Maryland man who took the drug as a child told a jury that J&J knew of the risk but downplayed possible side effects to doctors to boost sales.

In a statement, attorneys for Nicholas Murray, now 26, said the verdict on Tuesday "resoundingly told Johnson & Johnson that its actions were deliberate and malicious".