Bayer is Ordered to Pay Over $2.2 Billion to a User of Roundup

Recently, a jury ordered Bayer AG’s Monsanto unit to pay more than $2.2 billion, $250 million in compensatory damages and $2 billion in punitive damages, to John McKivison, a 49-year-old former Roundup user who argued that the herbicide he used at home and at work caused his non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a cancer connected to glyphosate, Roundup’s active ingredient. He had worked as a landscaper and loaded 25 gallon tanks of the weedkiller on his tractor to deal with weeds and vegetation and used it on his home garden as well. McKivison received the largest verdict in five years of Roundup litigation. In Roundup litigation, users usually argue that Monsanto, in fact, knew that some researchers deemed glyphosate a carcinogen, but wanted to bury related studies. If you were harmed by Roundup, you should call our seasoned Chicago-based product liability lawyers.

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Although Monsanto has won 10 out of 16 trials related to Roundup, it has faced serious damages awards as well. For instance, before the $2.2 billion verdict, it was confronted with a $1.5 billion verdict in November of last year. In 2019, a husband and wife who used the weedkiller for 30 years and developed cancer won a combined $2.055 billion in damages, but the award was cut to $87 million.

Bayer, the German conglomerate that acquired Monsanto for $63 billion, is under significant pressure. Its shares fell nearly 3% before the jury announced its verdict after analysts downgraded the company in connection with the Roundup litigation. Bayer has set aside up to $16 billion to resolve over 100,000 Roundup claims but is now facing a second wave of lawsuits claiming that the herbicide contains carcinogens.

Some leaders of the company don’t want to separate consumer-health and crops-science divisions even though investors are not happy about the Monsanto trials. Bayer has stated that the jury’s adverse verdicts conflict with scientific evidence and assessments by regulators and scientists. They hope to get verdicts like the one for plaintiff McKivison overturned and to successfully argue that the damages awards are unconstitutionally excessive. Meanwhile Bayer’s CEO has been reviewing the strategy and structure of the company as he attempts to calm investor fears and help the company emerge from its litigation challenges.

The Roundup weed killer may be defective in terms of its design, manufacturing, or marketing. It seems likely that the primary arguments to be made are that it was designed defectively because it uses the carcinogen glyphosate and that inadequate warnings were provided. When our attorneys are able to establish a manufacturer’s liability in a product liability lawsuit, we may be able to recover compensatory damages on your behalf. Additionally, when a company behaves egregiously, as this latest Roundup verdict suggests Monsanto did, punitive damages to deter and punish misconduct may be available.

If you were injured or a loved one died due to Roundup, you should discuss your situation with the knowledgeable trial lawyers of Moll Law Group. We represent injured plaintiffs and grieving families across the country. Please complete our online form or call us at 312.462.1700.