August 2018 — Johnson v Monsanto — In August 2018, the plaintiff, Dewayne Johnson, brought the first non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma lawsuit against Monsanto in front of a jury. Mr. Johnson had been a 46-year-old former groundskeeper for a school district who applied Roundup products to school properties as part of his job duties on a regular basis for years. In 2015, he had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Following an 8-week trial, the jury found that Monsanto was liable and awarded $289 million in total damages, which included $250 million in punitive damages. The judge later capped the punitive damage award, reducing the total jury award down to $78.5 million. Bayer had officially acquired Monsanto just as these lawsuits were beginning to appear in front of juries. After the acquisition, Bayer faced up to 125,000 Roundup lawsuits, according to public statements.
Reference: Moncivais, Katy. “Roundup Cancer Lawsuit: 2020 Updates & Settlements.” Consumer Safety, 8 Jan. 2021, https://www.consumersafety.org/product-lawsuits/roundup/.
