A massive verdict that was recently handed down in the Roundup trial could be cut and the plaintiffs are fighting back against that possibility. The verdict from the jury trial was over $2 billion, but a California judge reviewing the award said that it should be reduced significantly according to Law360.

Juries can award substantial amounts in personal injury and product liability cases, but there is always the possibility that such an award could be reduced at a later date.

The plaintiffs in that particular case in the Roundup trial, however, believe that they exercised their right to a jury trial and that reducing their award would be unfair.

Punitive damages in cases like this can be awarded depending on the specific facts of the case and the location of where the case was filed. When a jury decides to offer punitive damages, this is meant to send a message about especially harmful actions and to discourage companies from similar actions in the future.

The plaintiffs in this Roundup trial pointed out that the defendants actually took out a full-page ad to promote their product after the jury verdict came down. Monsanto has continued to argue that Roundup is a safe and effective product even though numerous lawsuits have been filed.

Those lawsuits all allege that the company knew or should have known about the possibility of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which plaintiffs say can develop from regularly using Roundup in a residential or commercial capacity.

The product has not come off the shelves after the verdict was revealed in May, and the advertising of the product, according to the plaintiffs, has become even more vigorous. What many of the plaintiffs inside versions of the Roundup trial have in common are a diagnosis of NHL and an argument that the company failed to warn about the dangers of the product according to Reuters.

The judge in the case, however, Judge Winifred Smith, claims that the due process clause inside the Constitution requires her to cut the punitive damages down to no more than 4 times the compensatory damages awarded. The judge also went on to state that the $52 million award from the jury for pain and suffering is too high given the circumstances.

The most recent hearing revealed that the judge felt that $2 million per year for each year that the affected plaintiffs were going through their most severe treatments and $600,000 per year for other years would be substantial if those awards are also cut.

A similar lawsuit in another Roundup trial had damages cut as well. The San Francisco jury in that case initially handed down an award of $289 million, but that verdict was reduced to $78 million in 2018, although the parties are still actively involved in the appeal process on that case.

Some believe that possible damage totals across all the Roundup cases could go as high as $20 billion.

Judge Smith has more than 500 cases of Roundup claims currently in front of her court. Many of them have been consolidated into MDL claims, and it’s expected that more cases could be filed as Roundup users become diagnosed with NHL and decide to bring forward legal action.

If you or a loved one developed cancer after using Roundup as a farm worker or home gardener, you may have a legal claim. Legal migrant farm workers may also seek help. Learn more by filling out the form on this page for a FREE case evaluation.

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