PHILADELPHIA – The manufacturers of weed killer Roundup have lost a third trial in Philadelphia and were hit with its largest-ever verdict at a whopping cost of $2.25 billion, not long after local juries handed down a $175 million verdict award to plaintiffs in the first case and a $3.5 million award in the second.
Plaintiff John McKivison of Jersey Shore, Pa. first filed suit in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas in January 2022 versus Nouryon Chemicals, LLC, Nouryon Surface Chemistry, LLC and Nouryon, USA, LLC of Radnor and Monsanto Company, of St. Louis, Mo.
Bayer AG, which acquired Monsanto in 2018, was not named as a party to the suit – whereas this was the second local case where Nouryon was named as a defendant.
McKivison’s attorneys argued that Nouryon, a Radnor-based company, created a chemical compound which enhanced the carcinogenic capacity of Roundup and allegedly caused their client to develop non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
McKivison alleged the manufacturers of Roundup concealed evidence that the product, which he said he used both at work and at his home, and its active component, glyphosate, was carcinogenic.
A Philadelphia jury agreed on Friday, awarding McKivison $2.25 billion – $250 million in compensatory damages and $2 billion in punitive damages. The award stands as the largest ever handed down in a Roundup trial.
As in one of the prior cases, the defense had argued many cases of non-Hodgkin lymphoma are caused by other mutations, as opposed to environmental factors.
In a joint statement, McKivison’s counsel, Thomas R. Kline from Kline & Specter and Jason Itkin of Arnold & Itkin said, “The jury’s punitive damages award sends a clear message that this multi-national corporation needs top-to-bottom change.”
A Bayer spokesperson also issued a statement in response to the verdict.
“We disagree with the jury’s adverse verdict that conflicts with the overwhelming weight of scientific evidence and worldwide regulatory and scientific assessments, and believe that we have strong arguments on appeal to get this verdict overturned and the unconstitutionally excessive damage award eliminated or reduced; previous damage awards have been reduced by more than 90% overall in final judgments. We have a winning record in the Roundup litigation – having won 10 of the last 16 cases at trial – and have resolved the majority of claims filed in this litigation,” the spokesperson said.
“The company remains committed to taking cases to trial, as our track record demonstrates that we win when plaintiffs’ attorneys and their experts are not allowed to misrepresent the worldwide regulatory and scientific assessments that continue to support the products’ safety. This verdict is also at odds with a recent decision by the U.S District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana granting the company’s motion for summary judgment in Whalen, a similar Roundup case, because plaintiffs lacked reliable evidence required to prove their case.”
Monsanto had won nine straight trials over use of its Roundup product – but it has now lost six of its last seven trials, across a variety of jurisdictions nationwide.
Monsanto’s streak was first snapped on Oct. 20 by a $1.25 million jury verdict for plaintiff John Durnell in a St. Louis, Missouri courtroom, while another similar case in San Diego was decided in favor of plaintiff Mike Dennis soon afterwards, for $332 million.
Another in Jefferson City, Missouri saw $1.56 billion awarded to plaintiffs James Draeger, Valorie Gunther and Dan Anderson on Nov. 17.
The first Roundup case in Philadelphia saw plaintiffs Ernest and Carmela Caranci be awarded $175 million in damages at the end of October, though the damages award is being appealed, after defense counsel believed the presiding judge gave “highly coercive” instructions to the jury in that case.
In the second Roundup case based in Philadelphia, plaintiff Kelly Jo Martel was awarded $3.5 million in early December. That award is also under appeal.
However, Bayer and Monsanto recently snapped their losing streak with a defense verdict victory rendered on Dec. 22 against plaintiff Bruce Jones, in California’s San Benito County Superior Court – now leaving the company 10-6 over its last 16 courtroom appearances.
According to both Monsanto and Bayer, Roundup and its main component glyphosate are safe for use and are not linked to cancer.
While Bayer settled the vast majority of Roundup-based lawsuit against it in 2020 for $10.9 billion, over 50,000 such cases against the company remain to be decided.
Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas case 220100337
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com