Bayer Wins Roundup Cancer Trial Amid Pending Settlement Review

Bayer secured a verdict in its favor on Thursday in a St. Louis federal court case involving three women who alleged its Roundup weedkiller caused non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The decision marks the first time a jury has ruled on such a case since the US Supreme Court issued a ruling in June that restricted the legal theories plaintiffs can use against the company.

The jury unanimously sided with Monsanto, which Bayer acquired in 2018, rejecting claims that the product was defectively designed or negligently sold. The three plaintiffs, Theresa Aretino, Cynthia Fernandez, and Betty Larkin, filed their lawsuit in 2020. Fernandez passed away before the trial began. None of the three women are part of Bayer's separate settlement plan.

This trial serves as a critical test for future litigation following the Supreme Court's decision. The court ruled that federal law mandates herbicide makers use the exact labels approved by the US Environmental Protection Agency. Because the EPA has determined that Roundup's label does not require a cancer warning, the Supreme Court blocked many previous lawsuits that relied on failure-to-warn arguments.

Bill Dodero, Bayer's US general counsel and global head of litigation, stated that the verdict demonstrates the difficulty remaining plaintiffs will face. "This verdict should send a strong signal that plaintiffs who wish to pursue claims in the court system following the Durnell ruling will face significant challenges both in demonstrating they have viable claims and putting forth the necessary evidence to prove them in court," Dodero said in a statement.

Bayer is simultaneously working to resolve tens of thousands of other cases through a proposed $7.25 billion settlement. A judge in a separate Missouri state court in St. Louis is currently reviewing that proposal. The company faces approximately 65,000 claims in US state and federal courts from individuals who say they developed cancer after using the product at home or work.

The litigation has weighed heavily on Bayer since the 2018 acquisition of Monsanto, contributing to a decline in the company's share price and costing billions of dollars. Bayer maintains that decades of studies show glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, is safe and does not cause cancer. The EPA is currently conducting a new review of glyphosate's safety, having previously concluded in 2015 that it is probably not carcinogenic, a view the company says aligns with the broader scientific consensus against the International Agency for Research on Cancer's 2015 classification.