Roundup weed killer has been in the legal headlines for nearly a decade, with victims claiming that chemicals in the herbicide caused their cancer. In recent weeks, Bayer AG, manufacturer of Roundup, lost yet another case, when a Philadelphia jury found the company liable for a restaurant owner’s cancer diagnosis. I’ll tell you more about the case below, and explain when a Northern New Jersey product liability attorney at Buttafuoco & Associates may be able to help if you believe you’ve been harmed by this product.
Details of the Roundup Case
In late October, retired restaurant owner Ernest Caranci won $25 million in compensatory damages and $150 million in punitive damages when a court determined that his non-Hodgkins was due to Roundup exposure. Caranci said he had been using the product in his garden for years, and claimed that the company failed to properly warn consumers that dangerous carcinogens lurked in its products.
This wasn’t the only recent verdict against Bayer AG. The week prior, the company was ordered to pay $1.25 million to another Roundup victim. And over the last several years, Bayer has lost multiple multi-million and billion-dollar judgments.
Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, has been named a carcinogen by the World Health Organization. It has also been linked to a variety of health issues beyond cancer, including birth defects, endocrine disruption, and neurological diseases.
Bayer AG Refuses to Acknowledge Dangers of Roundup
A spokesperson for Bayer described the verdict as “excessive” and said the company was confident that they could win an appeal. Bayer has claimed for years that the glyphosate-based product is safe for humans, despite thousands of lawsuits pouring in from cancer victims. They settled the vast majority of Roundup cases in 2020, paying out $10.9 billion to victims, but there are still nearly 40,000 cases awaiting them in court.
In response to these blows, Bayer has attempted to get the U.S. Supreme Court on its side and limit plaintiffs’ ability to sue. Thus far, they have not been successful. They have also refused to pull the product from shelves.
In terms of the science behind the claims that glyphosate is a cancer-causing agent, there is conflicting research, with some pointing to the fact that the ingredient is a carcinogen, while other research is inconclusive.
How Can an Attorney Help?
If you believe your cancer was caused by exposure to Roundup, working with a product liability attorney serving Northern New Jersey may be worth considering. There are a variety of lawsuit types, from individual suits to mass torts, where multiple cases are heard together in a single court. Buttafuoco & Associates offers free consultations, where we can talk through the details of your situation and discuss whether or not you have a case. We have worked on many product liability cases, and will bring decades of experience to your lawsuit.
It is paramount that we stand up to corporations who do not have consumers’ best interests at heart, and Buttafuoco & Associates will fight for your rights and to get you the compensation you deserve.
Get in touch today for a free case review at 1-800-NOW-HURT.
