Bayer AG Directed to Pay $1.25 Million in Roundup Cancer Lawsuit
In a verdict from St. Louis, Missouri, Bayer AG has been instructed to compensate John Durnell with $1.25 million. Durnell had initiated a lawsuit against Bayer, asserting that his non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma cancer diagnosis was a direct consequence of prolonged exposure to the company’s Roundup herbicide. [1]
W. Wylie Blair, representing Durnell, highlighted that this verdict disrupts Bayer’s previous record of consecutive victories in 9 Roundup-related trials. Blair emphasized that this was the inaugural trial where the jury was presented with evidence suggesting that components in Roundup, other than its primary ingredient glyphosate, might be carcinogenic.
Notably, the awarded sum did not encompass any punitive damages.
Expressing gratitude for the verdict, Blair stated:
“The client and plaintiff’s lawyers are extremely happy and grateful for the verdict after a hard-fought 3 week trial.”
In response, Bayer announced its intention to challenge the verdict, reiterating its confidence in the safety of Roundup. The company declared:
“We continue to stand behind the safety of Roundup and will defend the safety of our products and our good faith actions in any future litigation.”
Durnell, akin to numerous other plaintiffs pursuing legal action against Roundup, claimed that he was diagnosed with a cancer variant known as non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Blair confirmed that Durnell is currently in remission.
Since Bayer and Monsanto’s initial merger plans in 2016 and the official acquisition of Monsanto in 2018, a deal valued at $63 billion, the company has been consistently confronted with Roundup-related litigations.
It reminds me of a case in 2018 involving a California man named DeWayne Johnson, who also alleged that Monsanto hid evidence that glyphosate was carcinogenic.
In 2019, Edwin Hardeman was also awarded damages after a jury ruled in favor of the defendant, who was also alleging a cancer-Roundup link.
Despite these challenges, Bayer maintains that extensive research over the years has affirmed the safety of Roundup and its primary ingredient, glyphosate, for human consumption.
In 2020, Bayer resolved a majority of the Roundup claims against it with a settlement amounting to nearly $10.9 billion. However, the company continues to grapple with approximately 40,000 pending Roundup-related lawsuits.
Bayer’s attempts to contest plaintiffs’ rights to sue under state law at the U.S. Supreme Court have yet to yield success.
Sources:
[1] Reuters
