Couple Awarded $2 Billion in Roundup Lawsuit

A couple was awarded $2B in damages during the third Roundup lawsuit, as the pesticide was found to be a “significant factor” in their cancer diagnosis.

If there were an award for the largest jury settlement of the year, the third Roundup lawsuit would be it. According to Bloomberg, this is the eighth largest settlement in the history of U.S. product defect claims.

Over the last year, Bayer AG has been dealt some serious verdicts by jurors in California. This is the third lawsuit against the company that has gone to court, claiming that its Roundup weedkiller was a “significant factor” in causing cancer. There are nearly 13,400 other pending lawsuits filed by plaintiffs across the country. Our law firm is currently accepting new Roundup cases.

Both Alva and Alberta Pilliod used Roundup for nearly 35 years on their properties in California. The jury awarded each spouse with $1 billion, as well as $55 million in medical bills, pain and suffering.

They didn’t stop using the product until 2017, after Alva saw a commercial that linked the pesticide to cancer. By that point, both Pilliods were diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; Alva in 2011 and Alberta in 2015.

Dr. Dennis Weisenburger of the City of Hope National Medical Center, said Roundup was the most significant factor causing their cancer after reviewing over 2,000 of the Pilliod’s medical records. This is the conclusion the jury eventually came to as well.

Weisenburger estimated Alva used Roundup roughly 729 times, while Alberta used it roughly 270 times, for a combined total of 1,500 gallons of the pesticide. They used it without taking safety precautions– often spraying it on their clothing.

Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) only makes up about 4% of cancers worldwide. The high incident of an NHL diagnosis after exposure to Roundup is weighing significantly on Bayer AG, which acquired Monsanto last year for $63 million.

The value of the company has dropped in value by 40%. US District Judge Vince Chaabria, who has overseen two cases, has urged Bayer to pursue mediation with outstanding plaintiffs due to significant share prices depleting.

Prior to the Pilliod case, a jury awarded plaintiff Ed Hardeman with $80 million in damages. He developed NHL after using Roundup for nearly 25 years on his Santa Rosa properties.

In 2018, a jury awarded DeWayne Johnson with nearly $300 million in damages for his non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He had used Roundup throughout his career as a school groundskeeper in the San Francisco Bay Area. The damages were eventually brought down to $78 million.

Bayer continues to claim the main ingredient of concern, glyphosate, is safe and not carcinogenic. After the verdict, it even said the court findings contradicted a recent Environmental Protection Agency interim registration review decision last month.

Yet, when Bayer’s lawyer asked a juror what the panel wanted to hear from the company, the juror said they wanted them to “drink it” to demonstrate it is safe.

Roundup has been associated with a number of cancers, including:

  • Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL)
  • Follicular lymphoma
  • Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) / small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL)
  • Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL)
  • Marginal zone lymphomas
  • Burkitt lymphoma
  • Lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma (Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia)
  • Hairy cell leukemia

Questions About a Roundup Cancer Lawsuit? Contact a Johnson//Becker Lawyer for a Free Case Review.

If you or a loved one have been exposed to Roundup and subsequently been diagnosed with lymphoma or other cancer, you may want to speak with the lawyers at Johnson//Becker. We are currently accepting new Roundup lawsuits across the country, and you may be entitled to financial compensation.

We offer a Free Case Evaluation. Please contact us using the form below or by calling us at (800) 279-6386.

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