Bayer has filed an appeal against a jury verdict that found its weed killer drifted on to a peach farm and damaged the crop.
The company wants the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals to either reverse the verdict in the case of Bader Farms v. Monsanto, or order a new trial.
A jury in the Eastern District of Missouri found Monsanto and BASF liable for damage to Bill Bader's farm after the plaintiff claimed the dicamba weed killer, XtendIMax, drifted on to his land and destroyed his peach trees.
Limbaugh
An award of $265 million was reduced by $190 million by the court after BASF appealed against the amount, arguing it was unconsitutionally large and the jury was swayed by passion or prejudice when it came up with the number.
In a statement following the filing of its appeal, a spokesperson for Bayer said: "The jury’s verdict in this case is wholly at odds with Missouri law which requires a plaintiff to prove who and what caused his alleged damages and firmly establishes that no company can be held liable for damages caused by a product it did not manufacture or sell."
Bayer bought Monsanto for approximately $60 billion in the summer of 2018. Farmers across the country have filed suit claiming the weedkiller sprayed on dicamba-tolerant soybean and cotton crops drifted and damaged crops.
The company has offered to pay $400 million to resolve multi-district litigation managed by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.
"The trial court’s radical departure from established Missouri law eliminated the plaintiff’s burden to prove that Monsanto’s XtendiMax herbicide caused Bader Farms’ alleged losses and erroneously allowed the jury to find Monsanto responsible for third parties’ illegal spraying of herbicides not manufactured or sold by Monsanto," the company said in a statement following the filing of the appeal.
"The trial court also erred in the legal standards it applied in upholding the excessive compensatory and punitive damages.
“The 8th Circuit should reverse the jury’s decision and direct the district court to enter judgment for Monsanto, or in the alternative, vacate and remand the case for a new trial.
“Bayer stands strongly behind the safety and utility of our XtendiMax herbicide and has continued to enhance training and education efforts to help ensure growers can use these products successfully."
The ruling led to a compensatory award of $15 million in "lost profits" even though historically Bader earned $54,000 from the peaches and is still in business, Bayer argues.
The case was presided over by District Judge Stephen Limbaugh.