The federal court system has identified the third “wave” of Roundup lawsuits amidst the thousand of unsettled cases alleging that the weedkiller leads to developing non-Hodgkins lymphoma among the users.
As mentioned in a joint letter submitted on May 20, the U.S. District Judge, who is looking over the federal litigation, was advised that the parties have selected a group of 41 cases filed in Hawaii or Texas as a part of the third wave of Roundup lawsuits for case-specific discovery.
The parties indicated that the fact discovery in the cases would be completed by April 2021, along with expert discovery and expert testimony by September 2021.
Previously, two other “waves” of cases were selected, which included 17 claims from California and Nebraska in the first wave and the second wave of 37 claims from Illinois and North Carolina.
The COVID-19 pandemic has postponed the dates for the proceedings and preparations of the Roundup trials, which has resulted in extending the deadlines of the second wave by sixty days. Deadlines for fact discovery of the cases is now set for July 28, 2020, expert discovery by October 7, and the court will hold the Daubert hearing on January 18, 2021.
Bayer executives, in an annual general meeting, indicated that the company is currently facing Roundup lawsuits brought by more than 52,000 plaintiffs.
The general meeting also had a shareholder vote, during which the executives informed the investors that the ongoing pandemic crisis slowed Roundup settlement negotiations, as the company is facing economic challenges resulting from the outbreak and due to difficulties caused by social distancing procedures.
The company, following substantial pressure from shareholders to negotiate settlements for Roundup claims, engaged in a court-ordered mediation process with lawyers nationwide.
Mediator attorney Kenneth Feinberg, appointed by the court, is overseeing the controversial lawsuit. Ken Feinberg has overseen some of the largest mass-tort settlements in recent years, which includes funds to pay claims related to the BP oil spill, Volkswagen emissions scandal, General Motors ignition switch recall, and September 11th Victim Compensation fund.
U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria is presiding overall the federal multidistrict litigation (MDL No. 2741; In Re: Roundup Products Liability Litigation) in the Northern District of California.
