Roundup is a commonly used weed-killing product, with glyphosate as its active ingredient. Monsanto began manufacturing it globally. According to the World Health Organization and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), glyphosate is carcinogenic.
Forbes shared that Monsanto had settled more than 100,000 lawsuits and paid approximately $11 billion in May 2022. Despite that, there are close to 30,0000 pending lawsuits.
The trials started because Roundup was causing fatal health hazards amongst farmers, gardeners, and others who got exposed to it. DeWayne Johnson’s case was the first-ever lawsuit as he developed NHL (non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma). Being a groundskeeper, he extensively used Roundup in the San Francisco Bay Area. Initially, Johnson won $289.2 million, which later got reduced to $20.5 million.
The Current State of the Monsanto Trials
According to the September 2022 update, several lawsuits against Monsanto are still on. The brand has provided settlements to the victims for resolving the lawsuits. Many victims had completely refused the same because of low valuation. The Guardian shared that these trials will keep going on in 2023.
To date, Bayer, Monsanto’s parent company, has shelled out $16 billion for settling about 108,00 cases.
Roundup Lawsuit Payouts and Settlement Amounts depend on a mix of factors. It includes the plaintiff’s claim, the degree of damage suffered, and the severity of the illness. TorHoerman Law provides a free consultation to help people find out whether they qualify for a Roundup Lawsuit. The lawyers also share how long the case might take.
Keeping in mind the lawsuits, the law firm can help recover damages such as lost wages, medical expenses, punitive damages, suffering, and loss of consortium.
Filing a Roundup Lawsuit–the Essential Factors That Come Into Play
Time has a big role to play when you are filing a Roundup lawsuit. Has any of your loved ones or you got diagnosed with an ailment after getting exposed to Roundup? Here you have to assess the eligibility for the claim at the earliest. A few key factors to consider are:
1. Proof That Monsanto Didn’t Offer Any Health Risk Warning
The earlier claims against the brand comprised not being able to warn customers about the adverse effects of glyphosate exposure. Other factors are false advertising and negligence. In the past, plaintiffs said that Monsanto averted or misinterpreted the security data, which generally gets accepted at the time of herbicide manufacturing, sale, and distribution. If a person can prove that the company didn’t provide health warnings, they can file the case.
2. Negligence at the Time of Product Design
The plaintiff needs to prove that the concerned brand exercised negligence in designing the product. They have to prove that negligence is what led to the harm.
3. Proof of Using Roundup
It’s necessary to collect evidence of getting exposed to Roundup at home, at work, or on the farm. It can comprise used bottles, purchase invoices or receipts, and the SOPs.
4. The Overall Time of Exposure
Staying exposed to Roundup for a prolonged period will add more strength to the claim. Have you been working at a farm using this herbicide for many hours? If yes, chances are you might win the case compared to a person who might have merely visited a garden where Roundup got used to the foliage.
5. The Time Between the Herbicide Exposure and Diagnosis
The court can consider a latency time. It is done to assess the span between your getting exposed to the herbicide and contracting an ailment. Generally, lymphoma gets linked with increased exposure to Roundup for about two years. It’s essential to make sure that there is a similar gap between the exposure to herbicide and your diagnosis.
6. Evidence Connecting Herbicide Exposure and Diagnosis
It’s imperative to have scientific data to substantiate the lawsuit claim. In fact, it is the crucial evidence that will help in accomplishing a favorable verdict. It also affects the Roundup settlement amounts.
7. Existing Health Co-morbidities
Any other health co-morbidities along with glyphosate exposure will add to other ailments or the development of cancer. It will have a significant impact on the legal case. For instance, getting exposed to any other carcinogens apart from glyphosate, tobacco smoking, a track record of cancer, HIV/AIDS, or even taking immunosuppressants can bring down the scope of getting financial compensation.
It is necessary to rule out these co-morbidities and focus on glyphosate exposure to be factually correct in the claim.
Conclusion
Though the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) suggests that the connection between Roundup exposure and cancer is vague, the International Agency for Research on Cancer abides by scientific evidence. According to a CDC study, close to 80% of Americans might have Roundup traces in their urine sample, suggesting that they got exposed to it.
If a person has used Roundup once, chances are they will suffer from glyphosate exposure sooner or later. It is necessary to keep all the relevant details of your suffering and medical records handy. That will help to file a lawsuit and get the desired compensation.