What a $611 Million Verdict Against Bayer Means for the Future of Roundup Lawsuits
Even after agreeing to pay billions of dollars to cover tens of thousands of Roundup lawsuits, Bayer may now be responsible for another major expense.
The Missouri Supreme Court recently refused to take up the agricultural giant’s appeal of a $611 million Roundup verdict, meaning that the company may now have to pay out that staggering sum to four plaintiffs who claimed they developed non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma after using the popular weed killer.
While Bayer has agreed to settle many cases over the years, paying this steep verdict to just a few plaintiffs could be significant. The company said in July that it was setting aside roughly another $1.4 billion to address Roundup lawsuits. Bayer AG CEO Bill Anderson said that the company hoped to have the litigation contained by the end of 2026.
Bayer told the Missouri Independent that it was considering whether there were any other appeal options for the verdict, but those choices may be limited.
With more than 60,000 active cases pending, new lawsuits being filed and more trials on the horizon, Bayer is approaching an inflection point on how to handle the litigation.
Bayer Looks to Supreme Court, State Governments to Quell Roundup Lawsuits
One of Bayer’s main strategies to move past the Roundup litigation is to get the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on the issue. But so far, it remains unclear if the court will be willing to get involved.
In April, Bayer filed a petition requesting that the Supreme Court hear an appeal of a Roundup case. The main issue is whether federal law preempts, or overrules, the state laws that most Roundup lawsuits rely on to make their claims.
Bayer hopes that a positive ruling on this issue, which has seen divided results among lower courts, could end the overarching litigation.
But months later, the Supreme Court has remained quiet on whether or not it will take up the issue. At the end of June, the court asked the Solicitor General to weigh in and provide the U.S. government’s views on whether it should review a Roundup lawsuit.
In the meantime, the company is also looking to limit lawsuits at the state level. Following lobbying efforts by Bayer, both North Dakota and Georgia have passed laws that essentially shield pesticide makers from litigation.
But Bayer’s attempts to pass similar laws in other states, often in agriculture-heavy regions, have stalled out. Similar bills have been defeated or failed to advance in Iowa, Missouri and Oklahoma.
Bayer Suggests It Could Stop Selling Roundup
As the litigation goes on, Bayer has also suggested that it could stop selling Roundup altogether. This would be a significant development since it remains the most popular weed killer in the world.
The company has already removed glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, from the residential versions of its product. For now, the ingredient remains in use in agricultural settings.
But issues could continue beyond glyphosate. According to the Guardian, versions of Roundup released last year contain a new ingredient that is now also tied to health concerns.
Research has linked diquat, which has replaced glyphosate, to potential organ damage. Despite being introduced into Roundup, diquat is banned in the United Kingdom, the European Union and China.
