DOVER, Delaware – A mistrial has been declared by a Delaware judge in the latest lawsuit alleging that exposure to the popular weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. The decision was made after the jury sent a note stating that they were unable to reach a unanimous verdict after three days of deliberations. Despite the judge’s order to continue discussions, the jurors remained deadlocked.
The lawsuit was brought by the family of Anthony Cloud, a South Carolina landscaper who worked with Roundup for over a decade. Cloud was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2018 and passed away in October 2021, just six weeks after filing his lawsuit. His family sought $142 million in punitive damages in the trial, which began in early February in Wilmington.
Since acquiring Roundup’s manufacturer, Monsanto, in 2018, German chemical company Bayer AG has faced tens of thousands of such lawsuits. In January, a Philadelphia jury ordered Bayer to pay a substantial $2.3 billion in damages in a similar case involving a man diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma after long-term Roundup use. Prior to that, a Missouri jury awarded over $1.5 billion in damages to three plaintiffs, and a California jury initially issued a $2 billion verdict, later reduced to $87 million.
To address the mounting litigation, Bayer set aside more than $10 billion in 2020 to settle approximately 125,000 Roundup lawsuits. However, numerous cases still remain unresolved. After a series of victories in 2021, the company began facing legal setbacks, with juries awarding plaintiffs substantial sums. For instance, a California jury last year ordered Bayer to pay $332 million, but a judge reduced the award to $28 million.
Similar to previous cases, the Delaware plaintiffs claimed that Monsanto negligently designed Roundup and failed to provide adequate warning about its health risks. Last June, Bayer agreed to pay nearly $7 million to settle allegations made by the New York attorney general that Monsanto made false and misleading statements about Roundup’s safety.
Additionally, in 2022, a federal appeals court ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to review its 2020 determination that glyphosate, Roundup’s active ingredient, does not pose health risks to humans.
The mistrial in the Delaware case adds to the ongoing legal challenges faced by Bayer in relation to Roundup. The revelations and developments in these cases continue to shape public perception and raise concerns about the potential health impact of widely used commercial products. As the lawsuits and appeals process continue, the implications for Bayer and the regulatory landscape surrounding glyphosate will remain subjects of interest and scrutiny.