Glyphosate lawsuit: US government takes a stand against Bayer

Created: 05/11/2022, 00:28

Bayer AG in Berlin.

In the USA, the agrochemical and pharmaceutical group suffered a legal setback.

© Jörg Carstensen/dpa

Bayer wants the Supreme Court to review a judgment that could result in expensive legal risks for the company.

The US government's recommendation should not cause enthusiasm at the chemical giant.

Washington - The agrochemical and pharmaceutical group Bayer has suffered a setback in the US legal dispute over alleged cancer risks from the weed killer glyphosate.

The US government advised the Supreme Court - the highest court in the country - against accepting a landmark case.

The procedure could have a signal effect for many other US lawsuits.

For the Leverkusen-based Dax group, this involves legal risks worth billions.

Specifically, it is about the review of a judgment in favor of the plaintiff Edwin Hardeman, who blames glyphosate-containing products from the US manufacturer Monsanto, which Bayer has taken over, for his cancer.

In 2019, after a court case, he was ultimately awarded a good $25 million in damages.

Bayer hopes the Supreme Court will overturn the decision.

US government disagrees

However, it is not yet clear whether the US Supreme Court will deal with the case.

In December, the judges announced that they would seek the US government's opinion on what initially appeared to be a sign of interest and therefore positive for Bayer.

But now the recommendation of the Ministry of Justice is available - it takes the side of the plaintiff.

The government did not agree with Bayer's argument that federal law prevents claims for damages in individual US states.

"We continue to believe that there is good legal reason for the Supreme Court to review the Hardeman case and reverse the verdict," Bayer said in a statement.

This was also confirmed by numerous statements that had been submitted to the court.

For example, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has repeatedly stated that glyphosate-based herbicides can be used safely and are not carcinogenic.

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In the event that the Supreme Court does not want to deal with the glyphosate case or ultimately decides against Bayer, the company had made provisions of $ 4.5 billion in the summer.

The money would then be used to set up a program to deal with the claims of new plaintiffs over the next 15 years.

Bayer took on the problems surrounding the glyphosate weed killer Roundup in 2018 with the more than $60 billion purchase of Monsanto.

dpa