Edwin Hardeman v. Monsanto Co. was the first federal Roundup cancer lawsuit to proceed to trial before U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria. The trial was a bellwether case for more than 1,600 other plaintiffs with lawsuits consolidated in San Francisco’s Federal Court, all alleging that exposure to Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide and its active ingredient, glyphosate, cause non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). This was the second Roundup cancer case to go to trial against Monsanto.
After weeks of trial proceedings, a jury awarded Edwin Hardeman $80 million in damages. The judge overseeing the case later reduced the verdict to $25.2 million.
6/21/2022 update: The Supreme Court denied Bayer’s petition for a writ of certiorari, allowing Mr. Hardeman’s final judgment of $25.2 million to remain intact.
Statement from attorney R. Brent Wisner, who served on the trial team in Hardeman v. Monsanto Co.:
“The decision is not surprising, but it is welcomed. Monsanto will never get the ‘magic’ preemption bullet it hoped for. This litigation will continue to be fought in the trial courts, in front of juries, like it should be. I, for one, am looking forward to trying a case this Fall in California, having not been in the litigation since the Pilliod trial. I know Monsanto has had some recent trial victories. I'm hoping to change that, especially now that the appellate courts are, for all practical purposes, out of the way.”
5/9/2022 update: The Justice Department filed an Amicus Brief stating that Bayer’s writ of certiorari should be denied.
8/16/2021 update: Bayer submitted a petition for a writ of certiorari with the United States Supreme Court. Several amicus briefs have since been filed. The petition is pending.
5/14/2021 update: Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco denied Bayer’s appeal in Hardeman v. Monsanto Co.
Statement from co-lead counsel (Moore Law Group and Andrus Wagstaff) representing Mr. Hardeman:
“Mr. Hardeman is very pleased that the Ninth Circuit affirmed the jury’s verdict. The Court ruled that ‘substantial evidence of Monsanto’s malice was presented to the jury, supporting punitive damages.” Internal emails showed that Monsanto knew of the risk of cancer and failed to warn consumers like Mr. Hardeman. Today is significant for consumers holding pesticide companies like Monsanto accountable for causing thousands of people cancer.”
3/23/2020 update: Public Citizen and the Center for Food Safety filed amicus briefs in support of plaintiff-appellee Edwin Hardeman.
12/13/2019 update: Monsanto filed an appeal of the Hardeman verdict in the U.S. Court of Appeals Ninth Circuit.
7/17/2019 update: Amended Judgment. The judge reduced Mr. Hardeman’s verdict to $25.2M.
7/15/2019 update: Order Granting in Part and Denying in Part Monsanto’s Motion for Judgment on Punitive Damages, Denying Monsanto’s Motion for New Trial on Compensatory Damages
7/12/2019 update: Order Denying Monsanto’s Motions for Judgment and New Trial
Looking for unsealed Monsanto emails, communications, studies and other memoranda? View the Monsanto Papers.
Edwin Hardeman, 70, and his wife spent decades living in Sonoma County, California, on 56 acres of land previously used as an exotic animal refuge. He started using Monsanto herbicides to treat poison oak, overgrowth, and weeds on his property in 1986 and continued using Roundup through 2012. Mr. Hardeman was diagnosed with B-cell NHL in February of 2015, about a month before the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified glyphosate, a key ingredient in Roundup, as a “probable human carcinogen.”
Roughly a year after his diagnosis, Mr. Hardeman retained the law firm of Andrus Wagstaff and filed a lawsuit against Monsanto Co. on Feb. 12, 2016. Judge Chhabria selected his case as the first out of hundreds of other Monsanto Roundup cancer cases in the MDL to go before a jury.
In January of 2019, Judge Chhabria decided to grant Monsanto’s request to bifurcate Mr. Hardeman’s trial. Bifurcation creates two phases for trial.
The first phase addresses evidence relevant to causation, specifically, whether or not Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide significantly contributed to Mr. Hardeman developing NHL. If the jury finds that exposure to Roundup significantly contributed to Mr. Hardeman’s cancer, the case proceeds to the second phase, which focuses on Monsanto’s knowledge, conduct and damages (both compensatory and punitive).
Aimee Wagstaff (lead trial counsel) of Andrus Wagstaff and Jennifer Moore of Moore Law Group represent Mr. Hardeman. R. Brent Wisner of Wisner Baum will conduct direct examination of Dr. Christopher Portier, one of the plaintiff’s expert witnesses. Mr. Wisner served as co-lead trial counsel in Johnson v. Monsanto.
Open Letter to Mr. Vytenis Andriukaitis Commissioner Health & Food Safety European Commission Rue de la Loi / Wetstraat: Review of the Carcinogenicity of Glyphosate by EFSA and BfR by Dr. Christopher J. Portier (corresponding author), signed by 95 scientists
Open Letter to Jean Claude Juncker President, European Commission European Commission (cc to EPA): Review of the Carcinogenicity of Glyphosate by EChA, EFSA and BfR by Dr. Christopher J. Portier
Day 4: 3/1/19– Dr. Christopher Portier cross examination by Paul Schmidt and redirect examination by Brent Wisner via video testimony. Roger Turk video testimony. Richard Turley video testimony. Jeffrey Ye video testimony.
Dr. Roger Turk is Edwin Hardeman’s family physician, Dr. Richard Turley diagnosed Mr. Hardeman’s NHL, and Dr. Jeffrey Ye treated Mr. Hardeman’s NHL.
Day 5: 3/4/19– Proceedings without jury present.
Day 6: 3/5/19– Dr.Christopher Portier video testimony (continued). Plaintiff Edwin Hardeman direct examination by Jennifer Moore. No cross examination. Direct examination of Dr. Dennis Weisenburger, Chair of the Pathology Department of the City of Hope Medical Center.
Dr. Weisenburger specializes in the studies of the hematopoietic and immune systems, with a special interest in non-Hodgkin lymphoma. His study of the pathological mechanisms by which NHL develops began in the 1980s when he was directing large epidemiologic studies related to NHL.
Over the last four decades, Dr. Weisenburger has published over 300 papers on NHL in peer-reviewed journals, and over 50 papers on the epidemiology of NHL, including studies on glyphosate and NHL. Dr. Weisenburger engaged in a systematic review of the literature regarding glyphosate, utilized the Bradford Hill Criteria, and concluded that to “a reasonable degree of medical certainty that glyphosate and GBFs [glyphosate-based formulations] (including Roundup) can cause NHL in humans exposed to these chemicals in the workplace or environment.”
Dr. Weisenburger Expert Report
Day 7: 3/6/19– Dr. Weisenburger testimony (continued). Direct examination by Jennifer Moore. Cross-examination by Brian Stekloff. Redirect examination by Jennifer Moore. Recross-examination by Brian Stekloff.
William Reeves (Monsanto representative) video testimony. Mr. Reeves is Global Health and Safety Issues Management Lead at Bayer Crop Science.
Day 8: 3/8/2019– William Reeves video testimony (continued). Donna Farmer (Monsanto representative) video testimony. Ms. Farmer is a toxicologist for Monsanto (now Bayer).
Defense expert witness, Dr. Lorelei Mucci, direct examination by Matthews Johnson. Cross-examination by Aimee Wagstaff. Redirect examination by Matthews Johnson.
Dr. Mucci is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
Defense expert witness, Dr. Alexandra Levine, direct examination by Brian Stekloff.
Dr. Levine is a professor in City of Hope’s Hematologic Malignancies and Stem Cell Transplantation Institute.
Day 9: 3/11/2019– Dr. Levine direct examination by Brian Stekloff (continued). Cross-examination by Jennifer Moore. Redirect examination by Brian Stekloff. Recross-examination by Jennifer Moore.
Defense expert witness, Dr. Daniel Arber, direct examination by Rakesh Kilaru.
Dr. Arber is the Chair of Pathology at the University of Chicago.
Day 10: 3/12/2019– Dr. Daniel Arber direct examination by Rakesh Kilaru (continued). Cross-examination by Jennifer Moore.
Jury instructions. Plaintiff’s closing argument by Aimee Wagstaff. Defendant’s closing argument by Brian Stekloff. Rebuttal argument by Aimee Wagstaff.
Day 11: 3/14/2019 – Proceedings without jury present
Day 12: 3/15/2019 – Proceedings without jury present
Day 13: 3/18/2019 – Proceedings with and without jury present
Day 14: 3/19/2019 – Proceedings include jury verdict reached in favor of plaintiff for Phase 1
Day 15: 3/20/2019– Opening statement by Aimee Wagstaff. Opening statement by Brian Stekloff.
Mark Martens video testimony. Mr. Martens worked as Monsanto’s Toxicology Director, Europe/Africa from 1994 to approximately 2004.
William Reeves video testimony (see above). Mr. Reeves is Global Health and Safety Issues Management Lead at Bayer Crop Science.
Donna Farmer video testimony (see above). Ms. Farmer is a toxicologist for Monsanto (now Bayer)
Day 16: 3/22/2019– Donna Farmer video testimony (continued)
Dr. Chadi Nabhan direct examination by Aimee Wagstaff. Dr. Nabhan is a board-certified clinical medical oncologist and past Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Chicago.
Edwin Hardeman direct examination by Jennifer Moore. Cross-examination by Brian Stekloff. Redirect examination by Jennifer Moore.
Mary Hardeman direct examination by Jennifer Moore. Mrs. Hardeman is Edwin Hardeman’s wife.
Day 17: 3/25/2019 – William Heydens video deposition (Monsanto Regulatory Product Safety Assessment Lead. See above)
Christopher Portier video deposition (former director U.S. ATSDR. See above.)
Larry Kier video deposition (Monsanto consultant)
Samuel Murphey video deposition (Head of Global Issues Management, Bayer Crop Science)
Michael Koch video deposition (Product Safety Team Lead, Bayer Crop Science)
Hugh Grant video deposition (Monsanto Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, 2003-2018)
James Guard video deposition (Global Roundup Lawn & Garden Lead, Bayer Crop Science)
Day 18: 3/26/2019– Christopher Portier video deposition
Plaintiff rests
Defendant rests
Final Jury Instructions
Closing argument for the plaintiff by Jennifer Moore
Closing argument for the defense by Brian Stekloff
Rebuttal argument by Jennifer Moore
Day 19: 3/27/2019 – Verdict
Donna Farmer Trial Exhibits
Daniel Goldstein Trial Exhibits
James Guard Trial Exhibits
Edwin Hardeman Trial Exhibits
William Heydens Trial Exhibits
Larry Kier Trial Exhibits
Michael Koch Trial Exhibits
Mark Martens Trial Exhibits
Portier, Dr. Christopher Depo Exhibits
William Reeves Trial Exhibits
Beate Ritz Trial Exhibits
Roger Turk Trial Exhibits
Richard Turley Trial Exhibits
Dennis Weisenburger Trial Exhibits
Jeffrey Ye Trial Exhibits
"Wisner Baum gave exceptional attention to all aspects of the case, detailed inquiry, and tenacious overview of all the information submitted. The paralegals are efficient and diligent. I was completely surprised to find an empathic personal message to take care of my own health during the challenging time of being a full-time caretaker.*"
In May of 2019, the jury in the case of Pilliod et al. v, Monsanto Company ordered the agrochemical giant to pay $2.055 billion in damages to the plaintiffs, Alva and Alberta Pilliod, a Bay Area couple in their 70s. R. Brent Wisner served as co-lead trial attorney for the Pilliods, delivering the opening and closing statements and cross-examining several of Monsanto’s experts. Wisner Baum managing shareholder, Michael Baum and attorney Pedram Esfandiary also served on the trial team in the Pilliod case.
The judge later reduced their award to $87M. Monsanto appealed the Pilliod’s verdict which the California Court of Appeal for the First Appellate District denied on August 9, 2021. Monsanto then requested the California Supreme Court review the appeal’s court decision, which the court denied on Nov. 17, 2021. Monsanto (Bayer) then submitted a petition for a writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court which SCOTUS denied on June 27, 2022, allowing the final judgment of $87M to remain intact.
$289.2 million jury verdict in Monsanto Roundup trial
Wisner Baum co-represented Dewayne “Lee” Johnson in the first Roundup cancer lawsuit to proceed to trial. On Aug. 10, 2018, a San Francisco jury ordered Monsanto to pay $39.25 million in compensatory damages and $250 million in punitive damages to Mr. Johnson, a former groundskeeper who alleged exposure to Monsanto’s herbicides caused him to develop terminal non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Months after the jury verdict, the judge overseeing the trial reduced the punitive damages to $39.25 million. Mr. Johnson decided to accept the remittitur, bringing the adjusted amount awarded to Mr. Johnson $78.5 million.
Monsanto (Bayer) appealed the verdict and Johnson cross appealed. On July 20, 2020, the First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the verdict against Monsanto but reduced Mr. Johnson’s award to $20.5 million. The company chose not to take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, ending the litigation.
In 2016, Wisner Baum attorney Timothy A. Loranger and six other attorneys in the Plaintiffs’ Management Committee were able to secure a $265 million settlement for victims of the 2015 Amtrak 188 derailment in Philadelphia, one of the largest in the U.S. for 2016.
