US Judge Slams Bayer's $7.25B Roundup Settlement as 'Filthy'

In a tense hearing on Thursday, US District Judge Vince Chhabria of the Northern District of California excoriated a proposed $7.25 billion class action settlement by Bayer to resolve Roundup cancer claims, calling it 'mind-boggling,' 'legally problematic,' and a 'filthy deal.' The settlement, filed in St. Louis Circuit Court on February 17, was arranged without public notice or a transcript of the meeting with the judge. Opposing plaintiffs' lawyers argue the deal enriches a select group of attorneys while offering minimal compensation—averaging $40,000 for residential users with aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma before age 60—and imposes 'onerous' opt-out procedures. Chhabria, who has overseen the multidistrict litigation since 2016 and rejected a prior $2 billion settlement in 2021, acknowledged 'major problems' but said he lacks authority to intervene, leaving challenges to Missouri appellate courts or the US Supreme Court. Bayer has paid over $11 billion to resolve more than 100,000 claims but still faces 60,000 unresolved cases. The company also seeks a Supreme Court ruling that federal law preempts state failure-to-warn claims, with oral arguments heard on April 27 and a decision expected this summer.