Roundup Cancer Lawsuit News

Complications To Settling Monsanto Roundup Litigation

Some trials against Bayer have been postponed indefinitely while lawyers try to negotiate a settlement

Wednesday, February 5, 2020 - Bayer Inc, the parent company of Monsanto, and the maker of the controversial weedkiller Roundup may be considering voluntarily recalling the product from consumer shelves in the United States yet continuing to make it available to farmers in large industrial quantities. This makes perfect sense as the vast majority of the over 42,000, some say closer to 100,000, claims against the company have been filed on behalf of plaintiffs that were occupations users of the herbicide. Such occupations include government maintenance workers, landscapers, and homeowners that have sprayed it to kill weeds directly without concern for the underlying vegetation. Utility company workers all over the United States spray Roundup weedkiller underneath power lines that cut through forests and woodlands and have raised fears that the chemical has leached into and contaminated nearby water supplies. Three out of three lawsuits against Bayer have been decided in favor of plaintiffs that developed non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, rare cancer affecting the lymph nodes, after coming into direct skin contact with glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, often, repeatedly, and for many years due to using the product to kill weeds in public properties like parks, on and around custom landscaping, and by homeowners on their lawns and gardens. Financial experts say Bayer is looking to settle their Roundup litigation and cap their liability at $10 million. Roundup cancer lawyers offer a free consultation with no obligation to file a lawsuit claim.

Another critical topic on the minds of Bayer executives is finding ways to protect Monsanto's core GMO seed business to farmers all over the world. Banning Roundup would render Bayer seeds that have been genetically modified to be glyphosate-resistant useless, and result in a loss of seed sales revenue for many years to come. Toward that end, Bayer is investing $5 billion immediately to develop a glyphosate-free alternative weed killer that farmers can use.

While the decision to withdraw Roundup herbicide from some markets is hampering efforts by Bayer to settle the litigation against them, another complication is the company's refusal to upgrade Roundup's label to include a cancer warning. Doing so might help the company by establishing a date for a de-facto statute of limitations on a plaintiff's ability to file a claim going forward as cancer generally has a 10-year gestation period. According to the New York Times, "Plaintiffs lawyers, who claim the company manipulated the science, told Reuters they would insist on a cancer warning label as part of any Roundup settlement." Unfortunately, any Bayer/Roundup cancer settlement would include setting up a fixed-amount settlement sum, a procedure that has failed in the past as cancer can develop years after the initial exposure and over the years the compensation fund may have been depleted. The Times points out "Settling claims might not preclude future lawsuits if the fund runs out of money. In the Agent Orange litigation, Vietnam War veterans were allowed to sue chemical companies decades after a settlement was reached because the compensation fund was depleted by the time they developed their diseases."

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Lawyers for Roundup Cancer Lawsuits

Attorneys handling Roundup cancer lawsuits for leukemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and multiple myeloma offer free, no-obligation case review for individuals and families who believe they may have grounds to file a Roundup cancer lawsuit. Working on a contingency basis, these attorneys are committed to never charging legal fees unless they win compensation in your Roundup cancer lawsuit. The product liability litigators handling Roundup claims at the Onder Law Firm have a strong track record of success in representing families harmed by dangerous drugs and consumer products.