A Pennsylvania man claimed he contracted cancer after using Bayer's Roundup weed killer, and a court reduced the $2.25 billion federal verdict against the firm to $400 million on Tuesday.
A Philadelphia court jury found that John McKivison's non-Hodgkins lymphoma was caused by using Roundup in his yard for several years. The jury also mandated that Bayer pay $2 billion in punitive damages in addition to $250 million in compensatory damages.
Judge Susan Schulman granted some of Bayer's challenges to the verdict, reducing the compensatory damages to $50 million and the punitive damages to $350 million. Bayer plans to appeal the trial court's decision to allow the jury to hear testimony that the company finds deceptive and "inflammatory." The appeal will be pursued before the Pennsylvania Superior Court.
A Bayer representative said on Tuesday that they disagreed with the guilt verdict of the trial due to serious and reversible mistakes, even though the court's decision reduced the excessively high damage award. Additionally, Bayer demanded legislative action in the US to defend businesses whose goods adhere to federal labeling regulations.
Lawyers, pleased with the jury's decision on Roundup causing cancer, plan to appeal the $2.25 billion verdict. Bayer claims glyphosate in Roundup is safe, despite setbacks in court. Bayer's winning streak was ended by verdicts, which dashed investor and business hopes that the Roundup litigation was over. Approximately 165,000 claims have been filed against Bayer for the Roundup product, with most claiming harm from non-Hodgkins lymphoma. Bayer settled most of the ongoing cases for up to $9.6 billion, but there are still over 50,000 pending claims.
