Germany-based Bayer AG on Feb. 3 reported that it has reached a settlement to pay as much as $2 billion to manage and resolve potential future claims related to Roundup herbicide. Elements of the revised settlement, according to a Bayer statement, include the establishment of a fund to compensate qualified claimants during an initial four-year program; an advisory science panel whose findings would not be preclusive but can be used as evidence in potential future litigation involving class members; and a robust notice program.
“Plaintiffs’ class counsel are filing today a motion for preliminary approval of the class agreement with Judge Vince Chhabria of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, who presides over the Monsanto Roundup™ multidistrict litigation,” the company said. “The class plan is intended to be one part of a holistic solution designed to provide further closure to the Monsanto Roundup™ litigation.”
Bayer said it was also taking additional steps to provide greater transparency and access to glyphosate studies, including seeking permission from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to add a reference link on the labels for its glyphosate-based products that will provide consumers with access to scientific studies and information that the company has permission to disclose or are in the public domain.
Bayer, which took over Roundup as part of its 2018 acquisition of Monsanto Co. for $63 billion, announced last June that it had agreed to make a payment of $8.8-$9.6 billion to resolve approximately 75 percent of the then current Roundup cases (GM June 26, 2020). The settlement included an allowance expected to cover unresolved claims, and $1.25 billion to support a separate class agreement to address potential future litigation.
Bayer reported last fall (GM Sept. 18, 2020) that it had settled approximately 15,000 more U.S. lawsuits over Roundup, bringing the total number of resolved cases to 47,000 of an estimated 125,000 filed and unfiled Roundup claims.