Supreme Court Delivers a Victory for Pesticide Companies in Fight Over Cancer Claims
Key takeaways
- The 7-2 decision overturned a 2023 Missouri circuit court ruling that required agrochemical company Monsanto to pay John Durnell of St.
- Durnell said he used the glyphosate-based herbicide for twenty years before developing non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
- Glyphosate-based weedkillers make up the bulk of all agricultural pesticide use in the U.S., with farmers and ranchers spraying over 250 million pounds of the chemical across farmland each year.
Why this matters: environmental and climate reporting with long-term consequences.
June 25, 2026 Share This Article Republish Protesters gather in front of the Supreme Court for “The People vs. Poison” rally on April 27 in Washington, D.C. Credit: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images Related Thousands of People Say Roundup Caused Their Cancer. The Supreme Court May Quash Their Lawsuits. ‘Bayer Bill’ Granting Legal Protections to Pesticide Companies Fizzles Out in the Iowa Legislature Again Roundup Weedkiller Manufacturers to Pay $6.9 Million in False Advertising Settlement Share This Article Republish Most Popular As Colorado River States Struggle to Reach Agreement, New Mexico Brings on a Fresh Voice Trump Administration Abandons Fight Against Wind Energy as Clean Energy Output Surges How a Tiny Texas River Agency Plans to Build the Largest Desalination Plant in the Country A Supreme Court ruling issued Thursday limits Americans’ ability to sue pesticide makers over alleged health harms from their products.
The 7-2 decision overturned a 2023 Missouri circuit court ruling that required agrochemical company Monsanto to pay John Durnell of St. Louis $1.25 million in compensatory damages for failing to warn customers of the cancer-causing potential of its popular weedkiller, Roundup.
Durnell said he used the glyphosate-based herbicide for twenty years before developing non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.