What Does the Coronavirus Pandemic Have to Do with Monsanto’s Roundup and Thousands of Cancer Claims? NOTHING but Monsanto Wants to Use the Pandemic as an Excuse to Back Out of Settlements
Here is a headline that doesn’t surprise us, “Bayer said to be Reneging on Roundup Settlement Deals as Virus Closes Courthouses.” Many courthouses have temporarily closed their doors to the public but the justice system hasn’t shut down. More cases are being heard by video conferencing while jury trials are put on hold. None of this gives the multi-billion dollar Bayer Monsanto conglomerate the right to not pay cancer patients, especially when if cases have already settled.
Bayer is the parent company of Monsanto, maker of such dubious unsafe products such Roundup, PCB’s and Agent Orange. The company has a disastrous track record of killing consumers and military members. Although the company vigorously denies those allegations, juries have been saying otherwise.
Over the last two years Monsanto lost several high profile cases involving consumers that have developed Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma after using their popular weed killer, Roundup. The World Health Organization links the active ingredient in Roundup, glyphosate, to cancer.
The company continuously denies the cancer claims. It cites studies that show the product is safe but there are disturbing allegations that Monsanto secretly funded some of the so-called independent studies. There are also credible claims that the companies hired by Monsanto to do testing were convicted of fraud.
After losing consecutive three trials, Monsanto and Bayer quietly entered into settlement negotiations to settle the estimated 48,000 pending claims against them. We thought there was global resolution. Although not every cancer victim would accept the settlement terms, most would.
It is simply impossible to have 48,000+ trials and the cost for each trial is at least $100,000. It simply makes sense to settle. With losses of between $78 million and $2 billion per case, Monsanto would quickly go bankrupt if every case went to trial and won. The company may be worth billions but it would quickly run out of cash.
The company wisely choose to settle. Now it apparently has changed its mind. U.S. Right to Know reports the company is using the coronavirus pandemic as a way of backing out.
While Bayer’s stock price has certainly been impacted by the pandemic, the company is still worth far more than the estimated $10 billion needed to fund the settlements. In fact, we think the damages should be higher.
The estimated death rate from COVID-19 is between 2 and 4%. Those most at risk are people with compromised immune systems. That certainly means folks suffering from cancer. If anything, Bayer should be putting more money into the settlement.
Like always, Monsanto is in full denial mode. The company says,
“We’ve made progress in the Roundup mediation discussions, but the COVID-19 dynamics, including restrictions imposed in recent weeks, have caused meeting cancellations and delayed this process… As a result, the mediation process has significantly slowed, and realistically, we expect this will continue to be the case for the immediate future. During this time, we will continue to do whatever we can to help combat the global COVID-19 pandemic, consistent with our vision of ‘health for all, hunger for none.’ We cannot speculate about potential outcomes from the negotiations or timing, given the uncertainties surrounding the pandemic and the confidentiality of this process, but we remain committed to engaging in mediation in good faith.”
Their excuse is pure B.S. Settlement negotiations have not been impacted by the novel coronavirus. Mediations continue throughout the United States. Today they may be handled by phone or video conference but they continue.
In August 2018, former school groundskeeper DeWayne Johnson was awarded $289,000,000.00 after a California jury found that he likely contracted cancer after using Roundup at work. Two years later – and long before the coronavirus pandemic – Johnson still hasn’t been paid a dime. Mr. Johnson is suffering from stage 4 cancer. At the rate Monsanto stalls payments, he and many other cancer suffers will likely die before they receive a penny.
Most recently, the company quietly agreed to pay $39.5 million to settle a class action lawsuit that the company had improper warning labels on its glyphosate weed killer products. In addition to the cash, the company also agreed to beef up its warning labels in the United States.
A few big box stores have pulled Roundup from shelves but the company continues to advertise Roundup heavily.
While it’s true that new jury trials can’t proceed during the pandemic, Bayer Monsanto shouldn’t be allowed to delay payments another day. In fact, given the dangers of coronavirus to those suffering from cancer, the company should be paying even more.
We have over a dozen Roundup posts on our website. Please visit our Roundup lawsuit resources page and our cornerstone page for Roundup Cancer Claims. We have two must see videos that can be accessed from either link above.
Are you presently suffering from Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma or did a loved one die from NHL? If yes and if you / they were a user of Roundup you may have a claim. It’s not too late to get a piece of the settlement monies although the statute of limitations (time period to file a claim) varies greatly from state to state. In some states it may already be too late. If you are interested in filing a claim don’t delay.
To speak with a lawyer and learn whether you qualify, contact attorney Brian Mahany online, by email brian@mahanylaw.com or by phone at 202-800-9791. Cases handled nationwide. We do not charge any legal fees unless we are successful in recovering money for you.
The post Bayer Monsanto Welshing on Cancer Settlements? appeared first on Mahany Law.