US Supreme Court denies Bayer's new request in Roundup case

The United States Supreme Court rejected yet another request from Bayer in a case involving Roundup. This time it occurred in the case of Alberta and Alva Pilliod (Monsanto Company v. Pilliod). It was a denial of a "writ of certiorari", that is, the company's appeal trying to reverse the loss worth US$87 million was not admitted.

According to Reuters, Bayer reports "in its March annual report that it resolved around 107.000 cases out of around 138.000 cases in total." Put another way, there were 107 thousand agreements.

Regarding the new case, Bayer issued the following statement:

"Bayer respectfully disagrees with the Supreme Court's decision, but the company is not surprised considering the Court's dismissal in Hardeman just a week ago. There are likely to be future cases, including Roundup cases, that present the U.S. Supreme Court with preemption issues like Pilliod and Hardeman and could also create a circuit split and potentially change the legal environment. The Attorney General's brief in Hardeman referenced the Carson case, which is currently before the Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and involves a favorable ruling by the trial court that personal injury claims were preempted by federal law.

With its five-point plan, the company is fully prepared to manage the litigation risk associated with potential future claims in the U.S., as previously communicated in July 2021, including a voluntary claims program, transitioning active ingredients to glyphosate in the US L&G market and the additional provision taken at the time. The company has won the last four Roundup verdicts (Clark, Stephens, Shelton and, most recently, Johnson) and now has a record of trial victories.

Bayer continues to fully support its Roundup products, which are a valuable tool in efficient agricultural production around the world. The company is confident that the extensive body of science and consistently favorable opinions of key regulatory bodies around the world, including most recently the European Chemicals Agency's Risk Assessment Committee, provide a solid foundation on which it can defend successfully use Roundup in court when necessary. The company will only consider resolving outstanding cases and claims if it is strategically advantageous to do so."

Bayer's petition can be read here.

On this subject, we published information about the case Monsanto Company v. Hardeman here.