Californian Woman Sues Bayer Over Roundup

Introduction

A 70-year-old Californian woman has sued Bayer by making allegations that after regular usage of the company's Roundup weedkiller, she developed Non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

As per the court documents, the plaintiff got diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2017 as she used Roundup on her property for more than 30 years. The old age and deteriorating health of the plaintiff resulted in the fast-tracking of the lawsuit for an early outcome. The outcomes, evidence, and testimony can be used by the juries in other potential bellwether trials.

It will be the first Roundup trial to be held since 2020, as most of the U.S. judicial system shut down its operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The company is looking forward to settling the Roundup cases rather than uncertain jury trials.

Bayer has even announced that it will keep aside $4.5 billion as a reserve to cover the costs for the upcoming trials and ongoing settlements.

120,000 Non-Hodgkins lymphoma (NHL) cases have been filed by former Roundup users against Bayer and its subsidiary Monsanto. All the plaintiffs involved in the lawsuits allege the manufacturer withheld the risks associated with the weedkiller from the users for making a profit.

Earlier, Bayer suffered huge losses in Roundup trials held in 2018 and 2019. The company has even agreed to pay billions to settle the upcoming lawsuits that will go for a trial before the state and federal juries.

All the Roundup lawsuits are centralized before U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria in the Northern District of California for a coordinated discovery of evidence and testimony. The judge is even preparing to resolve numerous cases. He has ordered the plaintiffs to take part in a mediation program that will help to get a settlement for every plaintiff involved in the litigation.

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