Johnson & Johnson

In 2016 Greenpeace published a report on the progress towards zero deforestation in the palm oil supply chains of several multinational companies. Companies were assessed on three criteria: responsible sourcing, transparency and industry reform. This company was rated as 'failed promises'.
[Source 2016][More on Palm Oil]

This company received a score of 5.4/100 (retrieved 25-Feb-2020) in the Corporate Information Transparency Index (CITI), a system for evaluating supply chain practices in China, particularly in regards to environmental management and water pollution. Scores are calculated using government compliance data, online monitoring data, and third-party environmental audits, as well as trends in the environmental performance of factories in the company's supply chains.
[Source 2020][More on Habitats]

This company sources palm oil from 19 of the 25 dirty palm oil producers identified in the 2018 Greenpeace report "The Final Countdown". In addition to deforestation, the 25 individual cases in the report include evidence of exploitation and social conflicts, illegal deforestation, development without permits, plantation development in areas zoned for protection and forest fires linked to land clearance.
[Source 2018][More on Palm Oil]

In October 2016 this company lost a third straight trial over claims its talcum powder can cause ovarian cancer with a jury awarding a California woman more than $70 million, following damages verdicts of $72 million and $55 million earlier in 2016. J&J is facing another 1,700 similar lawsuits over its talcum products
[Source 2016][More on Product Safety]

DePuy Orthopaedics, a division of this company, has 3 hip replacement devices that have had a high failure rate, causing permanent injury to patients and requirements for revision and reconstruction surgery in a number of patients. The company has more than 7000 lawsuits pending in Federal US courts and 2000 lawsuits pending in California state courts. The company has set aside US$2b for settlements. The first lawsuits filed in state courts were settled in August 2012, awarding approximately US$200,000 to each victim.
[Source 2014][More on Product Safety]

As a result of the effects and inappropriate marketing of its antipsychotic drug Risperdal, this company was fined US$1.2b in 2012 in the Arkansas Federal Court due to claims the company downplayed risks and that over 240,000 cases of Medicaid fraud and 4,500 deceptive practices had been caused by the manufacturers marketing activity. Also in 2012 the company settled lawsuits with 36 US states and the District of Columbia regarding improper marketing techniques, specifically for the treatment of children. The cases were settled by the payment of US$181m. Other state cases were also settled including US$327m in South Carolina, US$258m in Louisiana and US$158m in Texas. The company continues to face hundreds of lawsuits regarding Risperdal.
[Source 2012][More on Irresponsible Marketing]

In July 2018 this company was ordered to pay a record US$4.69 billion to 22 women in the US who alleged the company's talc-based products contained asbestos and caused them to develop ovarian cancer. Johnson & Johnson is currently battling around 9000 talc cases.
[Source 2018][More on Product Safety]

In 2013, in one of the largest health care fraud settlements in US history, Johnson & Johnson agreed to pay more than $2.2 billion to resolve criminal and civil liability arising from allegations relating to the prescription drugs Risperdal, Invega and Natrecor, including promotion for uses not approved as safe and effective by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and payment of kickbacks to physicians and to the nation's largest long-term care pharmacy provider.
[Source 2013][More on Irresponsible Marketing]

This company appears on PETA's (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, USA) 'Companies That Do Test On Animals' list, signifying that they manufacture products that are tested on animals at some stage of development.
[Source 2020][More on Animal Testing]

In 2010, Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Ortho-McNeil pleaded guilty to illegally promoting Topamax and agreed to pay a $6.14 million fine. That year, its affiliate, Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, also agreed to pay $75.37 million to resolve similar allegations under the federal False Claims Act. Topamax has been linked to birth defects. In 2013 juries awarded $4 million to one family and $11 million to another over birth defects. More court cases and pending.
[Source 2013][More on Irresponsible marketing]

In 2019 this company was ordered by a US judge to pay US$572 million for its part in the opioid addiction crisis in Oklahoma, USA. Judge Thad Balkman said that J&J has became a "public nuisance" in promoting the addictive prescription painkillers to consumers in the state.
[Source 2019][More on Irresponsible marketing]

A 2018 report by Oxfam shows that four pharmaceutical corporations, including this one, systematically hide their profits in overseas tax havens. This activity could deprive developing countries of more than $100 million every year. These corporations deploy massive influencing operations to rig the rules in their favor and give their damaging behavior a veneer of legitimacy. Tax dodging, high prices, and influence peddling by drug companies exacerbate the yawning gap between rich and poor, between men and women, and between advanced economies and developing ones.
[Source 2018][More on Finance]

In Dec 2014 this company and 12 other consumer goods firms were fined a total of 951m euros by the French competition watchdog for price fixing in supermarkets. The regulator said the companies colluded on price increases between 2003 and 2006.
[Source 2014][More on Governance]