The Kickham Comment - Boston Accident Lawyer Blog
In Part One of my post on this subject, I discussed what Roundup is, what the history of these cases is, how cases are being brought to the courts, and what the possible values of these cases might be for people who have been exposed to it and have developed Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma (NHL) or similar types of cancer. Let’s proceed to whether or not someone who has been exposed to Roundup and has been diagnosed with NHL, might have a legally actionable claim for damages.
How Do I Know If I or A Loved One Has a Case Against Roundup?
One big misunderstanding that all the TV and internet ads about Roundup litigation have created is the idea that anyone who has ever bought and used Roundup, and who now may “not feel good”, has a valid claim. Not true. Plaintiffs who present valid Roundup injury claims, are typically people who have had long-term exposure to Roundup, and later developed Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma or other cancers. Those types of plaintiffs typically are:
- Farmers
- Landscapers
- People who own & operate greenhouses; or who have worked for several years in commercial or retail greenhouses
- People who grow & sell food products commercially
- People who grow & sell agricultural products commercially
Homeowners who occasionally bought & used Roundup can file claims, but their claims might fall in a lower tier of damages and value, than someone who had used the product regularly, for a long time.
More likely to fall in the top tier in the Multi-District Litigation (MDL) that I discussed in Part One of this post, will be cases where the plaintiffs can show prolonged exposure to Roundup (example – landscapers, farmers or commercial agricultural operators who used Roundup regularly for years) and have been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. This doesn’t mean that homeowners who used Roundup can’t submit claims, but the causal connection to lymphoma or other types of cancers will be more difficult to legally establish.
What are Roundup Cases Likely To Be Worth?
This is a tough question to answer at this stage of the MDL cases, but using the initial trial results discussed above as a rough guide, it’s fair to say that – for plaintiffs that can demonstrate that prolonged or at least frequent use is causally related to their cancer, the top tier of Roundup cases might approach settlement values in the range of $5-$10 million. Cases falling in the next lower tier will probably fall in the valuation range of $1-2 million, and cases in the lowest tier will likely fall under $200,000 in valuation. It’s also important to add that cases where the plaintiffs have contracted non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma will likely command a higher settlement value than the multiple myeloma cases because the medical science to date has shown a stronger correlation between exposure to Roundup and development of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Obviously, the above numbers are based on best guesses at this point in time.
How Does Anyone Know If Roundup Really Causes Cancer?
As far back as 2003, researchers at the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine studied the health of 3,400 farm workers in the Midwest and found that elevated rates of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma were correlated with exposure to glyphosate.
Later, a research article published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health found a “striking increase” in exposure to glyphosate and the development of non-Hodgkin lymphomas in 30 years’ time. More recently, in 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a division of the World Health Organization (WHO), determined glyphosate to be “probably carcinogenic”, due to findings that exposure to it caused cancer in tests on lab animals and caused damage to human DNA cells. The WHO is a pretty authoritative source of scientific data. In addition to all this, state legislation was introduced in Hawaii to ban Roundup from use on public roads and in parks. Outside the U.S., France has banned it from use in home-gardening centers. Denmark’s Environmental Authority has warned gardeners not to use Roundup to kill weeds.
Of course, in the face of all of the above, Monsanto has denied any connection between exposure to Roundup and the development of any cancers in humans.
Finding an Experienced Roundup Lawyer to Help You
If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, and suspects that prolonged use of Roundup may be connected with professional use of Roundup, call us today at either Ph.: (617) 285-3600 or Ph.: (781) 320-0062, or send us a Contact Form from this blog, and we’ll provide you with a free, no-obligation online review of your situation.