Bayer Hit With $2.1 Billion Roundup Verdict in Georgia — Largest Single-Plaintiff Award in State History

Two billion dollars in punitive damages. Sixty-five million in compensatory damages. One plaintiff.

In March 2025, a Georgia jury delivered a $2.1 billion verdict against Bayer — the company that acquired Monsanto and its flagship herbicide Roundup in 2018. The plaintiff developed non-Hodgkin lymphoma after years of using the glyphosate-based weedkiller.

It is the largest single-plaintiff verdict in Georgia history.

The Verdict Breakdown

The jury awarded $65 million in compensatory damages, covering the plaintiff's medical expenses, lost income, pain, and suffering. Then it added $2 billion in punitive damages — a signal that the jury found Bayer's conduct warranting punishment beyond mere compensation.

Punitive damages at this scale reflect a jury's conclusion that the defendant acted with reckless disregard for consumer safety. Georgia law does not cap punitive damages in product liability cases the way some states do, which is why the number could reach this level.

Bayer will appeal. The company has had some large verdicts reduced by judges on post-trial motions. But even reduced verdicts remain in the hundreds of millions, and appellate courts have upheld significant awards. In May 2025, a Missouri appellate court upheld a $611 million Roundup verdict. In November 2025, a California appeals court affirmed a $28 million verdict.

The Acquisition That Keeps Costing

Bayer purchased Monsanto in 2018 for $63 billion. It inherited a legal crisis that has since cost over $10 billion in settlements and continues to generate billion-dollar verdicts at trial.

Between 2023 and 2025, plaintiffs won nearly $5 billion in Roundup verdicts. Approximately 65,000 lawsuits remain pending as of early 2026.

In February 2026, Bayer proposed a $7.25 billion settlement to resolve thousands of remaining claims. A judge granted preliminary approval in March 2026, with final approval expected in July 2026. If approved, it would be one of the largest product liability settlements in U.S. history.

But the proposed settlement does not cover all claimants, and new cases are still being filed.

What the Science Shows

The International Agency for Research on Cancer — part of the World Health Organization — classified glyphosate as "probably carcinogenic to humans" in 2015. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has taken a different position, maintaining that glyphosate is "not likely to be carcinogenic to humans."

Juries have consistently sided with the IARC assessment. The disconnect between EPA's position and jury verdicts reflects a fundamental question: is the regulatory standard for "safe" the same as the legal standard for liability?

The answer, based on $5 billion in verdicts, is no.

What Comes Next

If the $7.25 billion settlement gains final approval, it will resolve a large portion of the pending cases. But it will not end the litigation. Individuals who opt out, future claimants, and cases in advanced stages of trial preparation will continue.

The Roundup litigation has been running for over a decade. It shows no signs of ending.

For the latest on this and other active mass torts, visit the 411 Press mass tort litigation tracker.