Judge slashes award but upholds verdict in Monsanto trial

SAN FRANCISCO: A San Francisco judge upheld a jury verdict that found Monsanto liable for not warning a groundskeeper that its weed killer product Roundup might cause cancer, but slashed the damages award.

Judge Suzanne Bolanos denied Monsanto’s request for a new trial but cut the US$289mil (RM1.2bil) damages award to US$78mil (RM324mil) to comply with the law regarding how punitive damages awards must be calculated.

Jurors in August unanimously found that Monsanto acted with “malice” and that its weed killers Roundup and the professional grade version RangerPro contribut- ed “substantially” to Dewayne Johnson’s terminal illness.

The jury ordered Monsanto to pay US$250mil (RM1bil) in punitive damages along with compensatory damages and other costs, bringing the total figure to nearly US$290mil.

Johnson, a California groundskeeper diagnosed in 2014 with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma – a cancer that affects white blood cells – says he repeatedly used a professional form of Roundup while working at a school in Benicia, California.

“Although we believe a reduction in punitive damages was unwarranted and we are weighing the options, we are pleased the court did not disturb the verdict,” Johnson’s lawyers said.

In her ruling, Bolanos gave Johnson the choice of accepting the lessened damages award or triggering a new trial focused on what Monsanto should pay in the case.

Johnson’s lawyers said they are considering which option to pursue.

“That said, today is a triumph for our legal system,” Johnson’s lawyers contended.

Monsanto-parent Bayer vowed on Monday to appeal the case.

“The court’s decision to reduce the punitive damage award by more than US$200mil (RM831mil) is a step in the right direction.

“But we continue to believe that the liability verdict and damage awards are not supported by the evidence at trial or the law and plan to file an appeal with the California Court of Appeal,” Bayer said.

Monsanto attorney George Lombardi argued in court earlier this month that the evidence presented at trial did not sufficiently back the verdict, and that an attorney for Johnson was wrong to urge jurors to teach the company a lesson.

In motions filed after the August verdict, Monsanto urged the judge to strip away the entire US$250mil punitive portion of the damages, arguing that a new trial was justified.

Johnson’s lawsuit built on 2015 findings by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, part of the UN World Health Organisation, which classified Roundup’s main ingredient glyphosate as a probable carcinogen, causing the state of California to follow suit.

Monsanto vice-president Scott Partridge told reporters outside the courthouse the day of the verdict that “the jury got it wrong”.

Monsanto has defended the weed killer, arguing that it has a history of safe use that dates back more than 40 years.