The Monsanto Company—now owned by Bayer AG—asked a California court to throw out a jury decision to hold them accountable and provide a Roundup cancer award of $289 million to plaintiff DeWayne J., complainant in a landmark case against them.

DeWayne filed suit against Monsanto in 2016 after having been diagnosed with lymphoma following several years operating in the capacity of a San Francisco-area school district groundskeeper.

The plaintiff says that he conservatively applied Ranger Pro—a stronger version of Monsanto’s Roundup—to five school campuses in excess of 150 gallons a day, up to 30 times per year.

The jury in the case deliberated and determined that DeWayne was due this Roundup cancer award after hearing testimony that there was data showing a compelling linkage between glyphosate—the key ingredient in this family of herbicides—and the development of lymphoma dating back to the early 1990s.

The World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) made the assessment in 2015 that glyphosate was a “probable human carcinogen” after completing a study whose data underscored a correlation between lymphoma and glyphosate.

This was presented at the trial by expert witnesses for DeWayne J. that represented the fields of oncology, toxicology, and health science. The professional testimony was so compelling that it was the likely source of the jury’s vote on his behalf and the high Roundup cancer award.

Monsanto Fights Award

According to a Law360 article, the Monsanto Co. attempted to fight back by alleging the complainant’s case lacked enough evidence to prove the relationship between DeWayne’s lymphoma diagnosis and use of their products. It asked the court to throw out the Roundup cancer award or take up a new trial altogether.

The Roundup cancer award totaling $289 million was granted DeWayne on Aug. 10, 2018, following three days of jury deliberations. The decision was made after reviewing evidence and coming to the conclusion that Monsanto failed to warn of potential dangers of its herbicide products. In omitting these warnings with said data available, the jury felt that the chemical giant acted with “malice or oppression.”

The Roundup cancer award is comprised of $250 million in assessed punitive damages against Monsanto as well as $39.25 million in compensatory damages.

Unfortunately for the chemical giant, this is just the first of what is now 8,000 pending lawsuits regarding Monsanto’s glyphosate-based products to go to trial.

Monsanto is arguing that their Roundup products have a 40-year safety record and that the products have been part of independent studies as well as required studies by domestic and foreign regulators. They feel the verdict should be thrown out in light of this history and support, or reduced dramatically.

The Monsanto Roundup Lawsuit is Case No. CGC16550128, in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of San Francisco. The related Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) for Roundup Products Liability is Case No. 3:16-md-02741, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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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