Feb 26 - A Texas trial judge on Thursday refused a request from Kenvue to dismiss litigation filed by state Attorney General Ken Paxton that alleges the company misrepresented the safety of Tylenol for use during pregnancy.
Judge LeAnn Rafferty of Panola County entered a one-sentence order denying Kenvue’s motion to dismiss. The order did not provide an explanation for the ruling and the judge’s reasoning was not immediately available.
Paxton, in the complaint, asserts that Kenvue violated provisions of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act by presenting Tylenol as safe for pregnant women while concealing purported risks to children exposed in utero. The complaint repeats a claim that using acetaminophen during pregnancy can cause autism in children; the article characterizes that claim as scientifically unproven.
Kenvue pushed back in court, arguing that labeling for acetaminophen products such as Tylenol falls within the regulatory authority of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The Summit, New Jersey-based company also contended that barring it from marketing Tylenol in a manner it says reflects "the current state of the science" would violate its free speech rights under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Neither Kenvue nor Paxton’s office immediately responded to requests for comment after the judge’s order was filed.
Legal proceedings will continue following the denial of the dismissal motion. The one-sentence order leaves unresolved both the substantive allegations in the complaint and Kenvue’s constitutional and preemption defenses. At this stage, the court record reflects only that the motion to dismiss has been denied and that further litigation steps will determine how the competing claims about regulatory authority, marketing practices, and alleged health risks are adjudicated.
The case centers on competing assertions about who sets safety and labeling standards for over-the-counter acetaminophen products and on the permissibility of state-level consumer protection claims when a manufacturer invokes federal regulatory primacy and constitutional protections.