ORS Olive Oil Hair Relaxer Lawsuit | 2026 Latest Updates

Plaintiffs allege that chemicals in hair relaxers, including ORS Olive Oil relaxers, caused or raised the risk of uterine, ovarian or breast cancer and fibroids. Namaste Laboratories markets ORS and denies that its products caused the injuries alleged. The claims are part of MDL No. 3060, a federal case before Judge Mary M. Rowland in the Northern District of Illinois. Namaste is a named defendant, and 12,129 actions are pending. A first bellwether trial is scheduled for September 7, 2027. As of October 2026, no settlement or verdict has occurred in the MDL.

Latest ORS Olive Oil Hair Relaxer Lawsuit Updates

October 1, 2026: Parties Report Progress at Status Hearing

The Northern District of Illinois held a status hearing in MDL No. 3060 before Judge Mary M. Rowland [1]. The parties said they had resolved issues on duplicate filings, overdue complaint forms and CMO 10-A compliance. Defendants withdrew their motion to strike an expert report of Dr. Schwingl, without prejudice and by agreement. The minute entries are docket entries 2052 and 2053.

September 24, 2026: Court Sets First Bellwether Trial

Judge Rowland set the first bellwether trial in the hair relaxer MDL for September 7, 2027. No order yet says which bellwether case will be tried first. The date appears in a minute entry, docket entry 2041.

September 1, 2026: JPML Report Counts 12,129 Pending Actions

The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation‘s statistics report showed 12,129 actions pending in the hair relaxer MDL [2]. The figure covers the whole MDL. It is not a count for ORS products or for any one defendant.

August 27, 2026: Court Sets Schedule and Deadline to Cut Bellwether Pool to Five

After an August 20, 2026 status hearing, the court adopted agreed dates. One is an October 21, 2026 deadline for a joint submission on a proposed order cutting the bellwether cases from ten to five. Case-specific expert discovery is set to close December 21, 2026. Summary judgment motions and case-specific Rule 702 motions must be filed by January 11, 2027. The order is docket entry 2016.

May 5, 2026: Rule 702 Motions on General Causation Filed

The Strength of Nature defendants, for all defendants, moved under Federal Rule of Evidence 702 to exclude plaintiffs’ general causation experts. Plaintiffs moved to exclude specific opinions of certain defense experts. The motions are docket entries 1828 and 1832. The court had not ruled on them as of October 2, 2026.

April 2, 2026: Judge Selects Ten-Case Bellwether Pool

Judge Rowland selected ten cases as the bellwether trial pool. An April 22, 2026 order amended the pool to substitute one plaintiff. The orders are docket entries 1781 and 1809. The pool order lists plaintiffs by name.

January 8, 2026: Court Hears Experts at Science Day

Science Day took place before Judge Rowland. The Plaintiff Steering Committee and the defendants presented experts on the scientific and medical issues in the litigation. The minute entry is docket entry 1664.

November 13, 2023: Court Rules on Motion to Dismiss

Judge Rowland granted in part and denied in part the defendants’ joint motion to dismiss. The court dismissed the negligent misrepresentation, fraud and fraudulent concealment counts [3]. The negligence, strict liability design defect, failure to warn and warranty claims went forward. The court dismissed Dabur International Limited and Dabur International USA Ltd. for lack of personal jurisdiction. Namaste Laboratories was not dismissed.

August 3, 2023: Court Adopts Form Listing ORS Products

Case Management Order No. 7 (Dkt. 175) adopted a form complaint for plaintiffs in the MDL [4]. The form lists Namaste Laboratories as a defendant. It also lists fourteen ORS Olive Oil and ORS HAIRepair products that a plaintiff may select. The list covers relaxers, texturizers and kits. Selecting a product is not a court finding about it.

February 6, 2023: Panel Centralizes Hair Relaxer Cases

The JPML centralized the hair relaxer actions as MDL No. 3060 before Judge Rowland [5]. By the date of the order, the JPML counted 53 involved actions in nineteen districts.

October 17, 2022: NIH Announces Hair Straightener Study

NIH announced a Sister Study analysis finding higher rates of uterine cancer among women who frequently used chemical hair straightening products [6]. Chang et al. reported a hazard ratio of 2.55 for frequent use [7]. The study followed women ages 35-74. The researchers did not collect information on brands or ingredients, so the findings do not point to any one product. Frequent use meant more than 4 times in the previous 12 months.

What Is a Chemical Hair Relaxer?

According to FDA, hair relaxers are products that make hair straight. Both hair dyes and hair relaxers can hurt the skin, hair and eyes, especially if a person is not careful [8]. The FDA says it monitors the safety of hair dyes and relaxers. Plaintiffs in the MDL allege that relaxers contain phthalates or other endocrine-disrupting chemicals.

Who May Be Affected?

Women who used chemical hair relaxers and were later diagnosed with uterine, endometrial or ovarian cancer may be affected. That includes ORS Olive Oil relaxers, texturizers or kits on the court’s short form complaint [9]. The same form has a box for other injuries and additional details. The National Cancer Institute says uterine cancer has two types, endometrial cancer (common) and uterine sarcoma (rare) [10]. Whether a particular person has a claim needs individualized legal review. Our hair relaxer lawsuit page covers the wider MDL.

Reported Injuries or Damages

Plaintiffs allege uterine, endometrial, ovarian and breast cancer, endometriosis, uterine fibroids and other reproductive injuries. These are allegations, not findings. Our page on uterine fibroids claims covers one of them. Reuters reported in November 2023 that Namaste said all its ingredients are approved for cosmetic use by U.S. regulators [11]. A lawyer for Namaste and its parent company, Dabur India, said Namaste does not believe plaintiffs have shown, or can show, that its relaxers caused their injuries. The Sister Study uterine cancer analysis found a hazard ratio of 1.80 for ever use of straightening products in the previous 12 months. In the Black Women’s Health Study of uterine cancer, heavy relaxer use had a hazard ratio of 1.18 overall (95% CI 0.81 to 1.71), which includes 1.0 [12]. Among postmenopausal women it was 1.64. A 2021 Sister Study ovarian cancer analysis reported a ratio of 2.19 (95% CI 1.12 to 4.27) for frequent straightener or relaxer use [13]. Eberle et al. counted 2,794 breast cancers in 2019 and reported a 1.18 ratio for personal straightener use (95% CI 0.99 to 1.41) [14].

Evidence to Preserve

If you used a hair relaxer, keep these items together in one safe place:

• Containers, boxes and kits of the relaxer you used, with the brand, product name and any lot or batch marking
• Receipts, order confirmations or loyalty records that show where and when you bought the product
• Photographs of the products and of any scalp, hair or skin reaction
• A note of when and how often you used the relaxer and who applied it
• Medical records of your diagnosis and treatment, with the dates of each visit
• Names of other relaxers, dyes or straighteners you used
• Salon receipts and stylist contact details

Filing Deadlines

State law sets the deadline for a product-liability claim. The deadline depends on where you live and on when the exposure, illness or injury and the diagnosis happened. Some states start the clock when a doctor diagnoses the illness. If you wait too long, a court may refuse a claim even when strong facts stand behind it. If you are considering a claim, check with a lawyer promptly.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is ORS Olive Oil Hair Relaxer Part of the Hair Relaxer Lawsuit?

ORS Olive Oil hair relaxer is part of the hair relaxer lawsuit through its marketer, Namaste Laboratories, LLC, a named defendant in the MDL. Reuters reported on November 6, 2023 that Namaste markets the ORS relaxers.

Is There a Class Action in the ORS Olive Oil Hair Relaxer Lawsuit?

The ORS Olive Oil hair relaxer lawsuit is part of an MDL with putative class actions. In February 2023, the JPML counted nine on overlapping classes. Plaintiffs moved to certify medical-monitoring classes and filed replies on August 3, 2026. The court has not ruled on class certification.

Does ORS Olive Oil Relaxer Cause Cancer?

No court has found that ORS Olive Oil relaxer causes cancer. A Namaste lawyer said formaldehyde is not an ingredient in Namaste hair relaxer products. Studies report associations for relaxers as a group, not findings about one brand.

Which ORS Products Are on the Court’s List?

The ORS products on the court’s list include ORS Olive Oil Curl Stretching Texturizer, ORS Olive Oil Professional No-Lye Relaxer Kit and ORS HAIRepair No-Lye Conditioning Relaxer System with Cuticle Shield. The list adds four Namaste Salon System relaxers.

Has the FDA Banned Hair Relaxers?

The FDA has not banned hair relaxers over formaldehyde. It has not issued a rule on formaldehyde in hair straightening products. A proposed rule on formaldehyde in hair smoothing or straightening products (RIN 0910-AI83) is at the proposed rule stage [15]. It concerns products that are heated.

What Does the Research Say About Chemical Hair Relaxers and Uterine Cancer Risk?

Research on chemical hair relaxers and uterine cancer risk includes the Chang et al. analysis. It followed 33,947 women for an average of 10.9 years and counted 378 uterine cancers. The authors call the result the first epidemiologic evidence of association.

References

1. https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/66801859/in-re-hair-relaxer-marketing-sales-practices-and-products-liability/?order_by=desc
2. https://www.jpml.uscourts.gov/sites/jpml/files/Pending_MDL_Dockets_By_Actions_Pending-September-1-2026.pdf
3. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-ilnd-1_23-cv-00818/pdf/USCOURTS-ilnd-1_23-cv-00818-0.pdf
4. https://www.ilnd.uscourts.gov/_assets/_documents/_forms/_cmecf/MDL3060/CMO%20No.%207.pdf
5. https://www.jpml.uscourts.gov/sites/jpml/files/MDL-3060-Transfer_Order-1-23.pdf
6. https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/hair-straightening-chemicals-associated-higher-uterine-cancer-risk
7. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9949582/
8. https://www.fda.gov/consumers/free-publications-women/hair-dye-and-hair-relaxers
9. https://www.ilnd.uscourts.gov/_assets/_documents/_forms/_cmecf/MDL3060/HRL%20MDL%20-%20Short%20Form%20Complaint.pdf
10. https://www.cancer.gov/types/uterine
11. https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2023/11/06/746980.htm
12. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10842360/
13. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8561257/
14. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7246134
15. https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/eAgendaViewRule?pubId=202510&RIN=0910-AI83