The US Supreme Court is divided in the legal dispute over Bayer’s Roundup weed killer.
With a view to the hearing before the US Supreme Court in the multi-billion dollar US glyphosate litigation, the pharmaceutical and chemical company Bayer has expressed its satisfaction. “We welcome the fact that the US Supreme Court is carefully examining the question of uniformity of regulation and the primacy of federal law,” said a statement from the DAX group distributed late on Monday evening.
As expected, the Supreme Court covered a wide range of questions, noted UBS analyst Matthew Weston. A few questions from lawyers have caused optimism for his Barclays colleague Charles Pitman-King. Overall, he sees his positive assessment of the way out of the glyphosate legal disputes confirmed.
According to JPMorgan expert Richard Vosser, the court’s decision is expected at the end of June. It has a signaling effect for around 80 percent of the pending glyphosate legal disputes, he wrote and reminds us that plaintiffs have until June 4th to join a billion-dollar settlement.
The US government and Bayer have convincingly demonstrated that warnings based on the laws of individual states that differ from the product label approved by the US Environmental Protection Agency are excluded by federal law. Anything else would result in a patchwork of warnings. Companies should not be able to be judged based on state law for complying with federal law.
However, a mixed picture emerged from the questions asked by the judges at the hearing. Brett Kavanaugh commented that there may be a need for uniformity in such warnings. Chief Justice John Roberts, however, asked whether states should not be allowed to point out new risks.
Bayer is hoping that a positive ruling in the Durnell case could help bring the expensive issue to a close in the foreseeable future. “A ruling in favor of the company would provide the necessary regulatory clarity to bring approved and new products to the market in the USA for farmers and consumers,” the statement concluded on Monday.
The judges must decide whether federal law on warning labels when selling weed killers – as Bayer argues – supersedes state law. This means that no warnings would be necessary because the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) does not see any health risks in the product if it is used in accordance with the regulations.
Plaintiff John Durnell’s case was originally heard in St. Louis in October 2023. The jury found that the company had a duty to warn about cancer and awarded the plaintiff high compensation. Bayer later selected this case to go to the US Supreme Court to obtain a landmark ruling. Experts expect a verdict by the end of June, as the current session of the US Supreme Court ends around this time.
This is how the stock reacts
Bayer shares have reacted with a significant decline in price to a hearing before the US Supreme Court in the multi-billion dollar US glyphosate litigation. Ultimately, the shares of the pharmaceutical and chemical group fell by 4.59 percent to 36.62 euros via XETRA.
Bayer was satisfied with the way the oral hearing went. A Supreme Court decision in the “Durnell” case is expected at the end of June 2026. The judges then have to decide whether, as Bayer argues, federal law takes precedence over individual state law when it comes to warning labels when selling weed killers. Bayer is hoping that a positive fundamental ruling could help bring this expensive issue to a close in the foreseeable future.
While the market sees the hearing negatively, the tone among experts has so far been neutral to positive. Some questions from the lawyers gave him optimism, wrote analyst Charles Pitman-King from the British investment bank Barclays in an initial reaction. His colleague Richard Vosser from JPMorgan once again pointed out the great importance of the upcoming verdict. It has a signaling effect for around 80 percent of the pending glyphosate legal disputes.
DOW JONES / dpa-AFX
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