THE WHAT? Former talc supplier, Whittaker, Clark & Daniels has filed for bankruptcy after a court ordered it to pay US$29 million in damages to a cancer victim, according to a report published by Bloomberg.

THE DETAILS The bankruptcy petition will bring a stop to further talc cases while the firm works out a payment plan for the US$1 billion it owes to various creditors. The company ceased trading in 2004 and has remained as a corporate shell since, dedicated to paying out talc claims.

THE WHY? The company said in a Chapter 11 filing, per Bloomberg, that the goal of the bankruptcy proceedings was to resolve all current and future claims in one fell swoop; the company is facing more than 1000 cases at present.