Multiple court decisions have been issued over the past two weeks as part of the ongoing Roundup litigation. A jury in Oregon awarded Bayer AG its fourth-consecutive victory related to Roundup and claims that its active ingredient glyphosate causes cancer. The decision came from the Circuit Court of Jackson County, Oregon. “The jury’s conclusions are consistent with the assessments of expert regulators worldwide as well as the overwhelming evidence from four decades of scientific studies concluding that Roundup can be used safely and is not carcinogenic,” Bayer said in a statement.
Bayer has been dealing with a multitude of lawsuits since the company took over Roundup’s original owner Monsanto Co. in 2018. Bayer has indicated that it has already settled over 75 percent of the cases. The company was unsuccessful however in another area of Roundup litigation. The U.S. Supreme Court has denied the writ of certiorari petition to hear the case Monsanto v. Hardeman, which pertains to state glyphosate health warnings.
“The company believes that the decision undermines the ability of companies to rely on official actions taken by expert regulatory agencies, as it permits every U.S. state to require a different product label, which conflicts with the clear intent of the “uniformity clause” adopted by the U.S. Congress in FIFRA and similar statutes,” Bayer said in a statement. “While this decision brings an end to the Hardeman case, there are likely to be future cases, including Roundup™ cases, that present the U.S. Supreme Court with preemption questions like Hardeman and could also create a Circuit split.”
All this comes as the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is requiring the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reassess health risks related to glyphosate. In a 3-0 decision, the federal appeals court declared that EPA did not adequately evaluate the potential impact to human health and the environment in its 2020 decision. The ruling does not impact the current use of glyphosate products, but EPA will be reviewing the decision which has been a central point of argument in Roundup litigation
About the Author
