Man wins $2.1 billion lawsuit over cancer caused by herbicide

A plaintiff who claimed cancer was caused by the weed killer Roundup has won a $2.1 billion lawsuit in the US, while the defendant said it would appeal.

Bayer has faced multiple Roundup-related court cases since completing its $63 billion acquisition of Monsanto in 2018.

A jury in the state of Georgia (USA) has just forced Bayer AG (Germany) to pay about 2.1 billion USD to a plaintiff who sued the company's Roundup weed killer product causing cancer.

The verdict, issued on March 21 (local time), includes $65 million in compensatory damages and $2 billion in punitive damages, according to Bloomberg, citing a statement from Arnold & Itkin and Kline & Specter PC, which represent the plaintiffs. The statement did not specify the plaintiffs' identities.

Bayer disagrees with the ruling and will appeal, according to a company spokesperson. The company said the ruling contradicts the scientific evidence and consensus of regulatory agencies and their scientific reviews around the world.

"We believe we have a strong argument on appeal to overturn this ruling and eliminate or reduce the excessive and unconstitutional damages awards," the spokesperson said in a statement, according to Reuters.

Bayer has previously succeeded in reducing such damages by 90% compared to initial jury verdicts in cases that have reached final verdicts, the company said. The company said it continues to “fully support the safety of Roundup products” and is in the process of appealing previous cases, potentially to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Bayer has faced trials related to the herbicide Roundup in the US since completing its $63 billion acquisition of Monsanto in 2018.

While the company has been successful in 17 of the last 25 trials on the issue, it has lost several cases in which juries have awarded billions of dollars in damages. Even as Bayer has largely reduced those awards, tens of thousands of new plaintiffs have filed lawsuits against the company.

Bayer CEO Bill Anderson has pledged to largely eliminate Roundup-related litigation by 2026. The company has already spent about $10 billion of the $16 billion it set aside to settle those cases.

Bayer shares have fallen more than 70% since the Monsanto deal was completed, with many investors citing legal troubles as a deterrent to buying the company.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/mot-nguoi-thang-kien-21-ti-usd-vi-bi-ung-thu-do-thuoc-diet-co-185250322205723776.htm