Judge denies Texas bid for bar on Tylenol marketing in state

Madlin Mekelburg, Jef Feeley and Redd Brown, Bloomberg News on Nov 15, 2025

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A judge rejected for now a bid by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to bar Tylenol-maker Kenvue Inc. from marketing its over-the-counter pain medication as being safe for pregnant women within the state.

After a hearing Friday, State District Judge LeAnn Rafferty denied Paxton’s request for a temporary restraining order, court records show. The attorney general sued Kenvue and its former parent Johnson & Johnson on Oct. 28, claiming they concealed the risks of autism and other disorders for children if mothers take Tylenol during pregnancy.

Experts say there’s no clear connection between the use of acetaminophen (the active ingredient in Tylenol) during pregnancy and adverse neurobehavioral or developmental outcomes such as autism. Kenvue has pushed back against this link, saying the claims are unsupported by scientific evidence. Untreated fevers and pain are known risks during pregnancy.

In a statement, Kenvue said the attempt by Texas to block marketing of Tylenol had “reached far beyond the state’s jurisdiction, defied science, and placed the health of women and children at risk. Their tactics are politically and financially motivated and have nothing to do with the health and safety of consumers. We will continue to do everything in our power to stand up for sound, credible science.”

Paxton has been state attorney general since 2015 and is a longtime ally of President Donald Trump, who ignited scrutiny of Tylenol in September when he said pregnant women shouldn’t take it. He didn’t cite scientific evidence to support his recommendation. Paxton is currently running for one of Texas’s U.S. Senate seats.

Kimberly-Clark Corp. announced Nov. 3 it would buy Kenvue for roughly $40 billion. The companies say they carefully considered the potential risk of lawsuits related to Tylenol before moving forward with the deal, though analysts warned investors could be wary of the acquisition given the mounting legal issues.

In his request for the temporary order, Paxton also had asked that Kenvue be blocked from issuing its dividend. The judge rejected that. Paxton argued any dividends paid by Kenvue would violate a Texas law prohibiting people and businesses from moving assets in order to avoid paying debts or fulfilling other obligations.