Bayer Soars After $10.5 Billion Settlement On Current And Future Roundup Cancer Lawsuits

Bayer stock jumped the most in three months after the company announced a $10.5 billion settlement push to settle current and future cancer lawsuits over its Roundup weedkiller. The news was first reported by Bloomberg. 

The German chemical giant proposed a $7.5 billion class-action settlement through cases filed in state court in Missouri designed to resolve Roundup suits that already have been filed and potential claims that could be filed over a 20-year period.

Bayer also announced $3 billion in settlements of existing U.S. cases in which former Roundup users blame the herbicide for causing their non-Hodgkins lymphoma, it reported.

The company has paid about $10 billion to settle most of the Roundup lawsuits that were pending as of 2020, but failed to get a settlement covering future cases. New lawsuits have continued to pour in since then. Plaintiffs have said they developed non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and other forms of cancer due to using Roundup, either at home or on the job.

Roundup, which was acquired by Bayer, is among the most widely used weedkillers in the United States

The class settlement aimed at resolving current and future claims that Roundup weedkiller caused non‑Hodgkin lymphoma is an important addition to its Supreme Court case, Bayer CEO Bill Anderson said on Tuesday.

“We are entering into the settlement because it is an important addition to the case before the Supreme Court, thereby minimising the legal risks as comprehensively as possible,” he said. “Both elements are necessary independently of each other and reinforce each other,” he added.

Bayer stock surged on news of the settlement.