US consumer products company Johnson & Johnson has agreed to settle for up to $840 million in a class-actionclaiming the company misled consumers by marketing two brands of essentially interchangeable contact lenses at significantly different prices, it was reported today.
The report in the Wall Street Journalcited a memorandum filed jointly by the lawyers for the plaintiffs and the company.
The above-named figure would apply if all six million class members sought compensation, which is estimated to average $140 each, the report said.
It added the company also agreed to pay as much as £20 million sterling to cover the legal fees of the suit.
The suit, filed in a New Jersey state court in 1996, alleged Johnson & Johnson sold Acuvue contact lenses that were to be disposed of after one day's use for much less than nearly identical lenses labelled for two-week use.
This, the suit alleged, led consumers to stick with the two-week lenses when they could have used the one-day use lenses for one-fifth of the cost, the report said.
In a written statement Johnson & Johnson said it had entered into a settlement of the case "for a very modest outlay to put the uncertainty of litigation behind the company".
AFP