Sieben Alexander, P.A. Secures $10.2M Verdict for Twin Cities Family Against Cosmetic Talc Manufacturers

The second-largest mesothelioma personal injury award in Minnesota history, the verdict holds five companies accountable for a 43-year-old father's cancer diagnosis

EAGAN, Minn., May 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Eagan-based Sieben Alexander, P.A., alongside Simon Greenstone Panatier PC, has secured a $10.2 million jury verdict for Daniel Heyer and his wife, Nicole Heyer, in a mesothelioma lawsuit against five cosmetic talc manufacturers. The Ramsey County verdict is believed to be the second-largest mesothelioma personal injury award in Minnesota history.

"Daniel Heyer grew up here and raised his family here. He used products he found on the shelves of neighborhood stores—products the jury determined were known by these companies to be dangerous and sold anyway, without ever warning a single customer," said Attorney Chad Alexander, President of Sieben Alexander, P.A. "This was an absolutely preventable disease, and we believe the jury's verdict reflects that fact."

Mr. Heyer spent decades using store-brand body, baby, and foot powders, including Walmart's Equate, Target's Up & Up, and Walgreens-branded products—all manufactured by Vi-Jon LLC, which used asbestos-contaminated talc. He was diagnosed with mesothelioma in late 2024 at age 43 and given a year to live. He testified at trial from a wheelchair, on oxygen around the clock.

The jury found that Vi-Jon and four co-defendants—Gold Bond, Merck (Dr. Scholl's), Johnson & Johnson, and Perrigo Co. of Tennessee—manufactured talc products in a defective and unreasonably dangerous condition and failed to warn consumers of the risks, and that those failures directly caused Mr. Heyer's cancer.

"We are particularly grateful for the partnership of Shaina Weissman and Holly Peterson of Simon Greenstone, two outstanding trial attorneys whose advocacy made a difference for this family," said Alexander.

The case is Daniel J. Heyer and Nicole Heyer v. Vi-Jon, LLC, Case No. 62-CV-25-5182, Second Judicial District Court, Ramsey County, Minnesota.

About Sieben Alexander, P.A.
Sieben Alexander, P.A. is based in Eagan, Minnesota, and has represented victims of asbestos exposure and other catastrophic injuries since 1972.

SOURCE Sieben Alexander