The family of an Illinois woman claims exposure to Roundup herbicide caused a fatal case of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in a recently filed wrongful death lawsuit.
The personal representative and heir of Stephanie Bare-Wheeler filed the complaint earlier this month, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri against Monsanto Company,
Bare-Wheelers death, in September 2016, was from complications associated with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The lawsuit alleges that the cancer was the result of regular exposure to Roundup beginning in 1996.
Monsanto is accused in the lawsuit of providing false and misleading information for Bare-Wheeler and other consumers of the associated risks of using Roundup and other herbicides that contain glyphosate.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a branch of the World Health Organization, classified Roundup as a probable human carcinogen. Concerns have been raised worldwide, prompted by that classification, questioning why Monsanto failed to provide Roundup users with adequate warnings and recommend safety measures.
The wrongful death lawsuit joins hundreds of others that are piling up in courts nationwide, each raising similar allegations claiming the provision of adequate warnings by Monsanto could have prevented cases of Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
“Despite Defendants knowledge that Roundup was associated with an elevated risk of developing cancer, Defendants promotional campaigns focused on Roundup’s purported safety profile,” the lawsuit alleges. “The failure of Defendant to appropriately warn and inform the EPA has resulted in inadequate warnings and recommend safety precautions for users of Roundup, and sparked the avalanche of recent product liability lawsuits nationwide.
Similar questions of fact and law contained in the countless lawsuits filed nationwide have prompted the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Legislation (JPML) to establish consolidated partial proceedings for all Roundup exposure cases. Claims were centralized before U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria in the Northern District of California in October 2016. This move is reduce duplicate discovery, prevent conflicting rulings and serve the convenience of the parties, witnesses and the courts.
Before addressing individual case specifics in the Roundup litigation, Judge Chhabria will first address general causation regarding the link between the popular weed killer and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma as part of the coordinated MDL proceedings.
Establishment of a bellwether process is anticipated from Judge Chhabria if a settlement or other resolution is not reached during the first phase of discovery. Early trial dates will be set for a small number of cases to test the waters of jury responses to certain evidence and testimony that is apt to be repeated throughout the lawsuits.
If You Had Exposure to Roundup
If you had regular exposure to Roundup it is prudent to have regular check-ups with your doctor to catch any issues in the early stages. Aside from non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma there are many other adverse health issues associated with the widely used weed killer.
If you have been diagnosed with any Roundup related condition contact an experienced product liability lawyer at Vititoe Law Group today. You need a law firm that has the experience and resources to vehemently fight a large corporation like Monsanto. Vititoe Law Group is that law firm.
