Legal Ledger brief: CA cancer case on glyphosate

On Aug. 10, San Francisco’s Superior Court in California found in favor of plaintiff Dewayne Johnson in his case brought against Monsanto. Johnson, who has terminal non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, claims his cancer was caused by a pair of Monsanto’s glyphosate products, including RoundUp. The jury awarded Johnson $289 million in damages. However, Monsanto Vice-President Scott Partridge said the company will challenge the verdict, citing hundreds of scientific studies, reviews, and even the conclusions of the Environmental Protection Agency that “support the fact that glyphosate does not cause cancer, and did not cause Mr. Johnson’s cancer. We will appeal this decision and continue to vigorously defend this product, which has a 40-year history of safe use and continues to be a vital, effective and safe tool for farmers and others.” According to DTN, Monsanto faces over 5,000 similar cases across the country and soon-to-be parent company Bayer saw stock drop 10 percent following the verdict.