Federal Court brings end to Roundup litigation in Australia: Bayer
Leverkusen: Bayer has announced that the Federal Court of Australia brought an end to the last Roundup case in Australia, closing all pending injury litigation there. The Court granted the plaintiffs’ request to discontinue the Fenton class action against Monsanto involving allegations related to Roundup. This action follows the company’s earlier victory in the McNickle case in the same court.
McNickle was the first Roundup final judgment outside of the United States on the question of whether glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, causes non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). The Court issued a 322-page ruling finding that the weight of scientific evidence does not support a link between glyphosate and NHL. This is an outcome consistent with worldwide regulatory and scientific assessments, including from the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA), concluding that glyphosate is not carcinogenic.
In the United States, Bayer will continue its multipronged strategy to significantly contain the Roundup litigation. Having achieved favorable outcomes in 15 of the last 22 trials, the company has a winning record in court and will continue to try cases, based on the overwhelming scientific and regulatory evidence in support of the safety of glyphosate. Additionally, the company will seek U.S. Supreme Court review on the cross-cutting question of whether all of the state-based warning claims in this litigation are preempted by federal law, and is currently evaluating cases to determine the best vehicle for this appeal. In the meantime, Bayer will consider settlements if they are in the company’s interest and also continuously evaluates any other possible means to contain the legal risks.
Together with more than 360 grower and industry groups, Bayer will also continue to engage with policymakers at the federal and state level for legislative certainty around labeling in the USA. Without reform, the U.S. risks the availability of a domestic-produced crop protection tool that has consistently been found to be safe by regulatory bodies worldwide. The misapplication of the law by the litigation industry is driving up the cost of food and threatening its supply.
