Bayer's $7.25 billion Roundup settlement stalls as plaintiff attorneys seek more time and the Supreme Court weighs preemption in *Monsanto v. Durnell*.
Bayer AG's proposed $7.25 billion settlement covering the bulk of remaining Roundup plaintiffs has stalled, with plaintiff attorneys seeking additional time to consult clients before committing to the deal [1]. Bayer has signaled it may withdraw the offer if the participation threshold, drawn from a pool of nearly 65,000 plaintiffs, is not met [1]. The negotiations are unfolding against the backdrop of the Supreme Court's pending consideration of federal preemption in *Monsanto v. Durnell*, a case that could fundamentally alter each side's leverage [1].
The settlement discussions arise from *In re Roundup Products Liability Litigation*, the sprawling multidistrict litigation consolidated in federal court that has generated years of bellwether trials, mixed jury verdicts, and repeated attempts at global resolution [1]. Bayer, which acquired Monsanto in 2018 and inherited the litigation, has been working to extinguish state-court claims alleging that glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, causes non-Hodgkin lymphoma [1]. Plaintiff counsel argue that clients need adequate time to evaluate the proposed terms before any opt-in deadline can be enforced [1].
The stakes turn on timing. If the Supreme Court rules in *Monsanto v. Durnell* that federal pesticide labeling law preempts state failure-to-warn claims, Bayer's exposure shrinks materially, and the company's incentive to honor a $7.25 billion offer diminishes accordingly [1]. Conversely, a ruling rejecting preemption would leave state-court claims intact across the country, preserving plaintiff leverage and potentially pushing Bayer toward a larger or restructured resolution [1]. That binary outcome explains why both sides have strong incentives to wait, and why settlement momentum has stalled rather than collapsed [1].
The immediate question is whether plaintiffs can marshal sufficient participation to satisfy Bayer's threshold before the company exercises its withdrawal right [1]. Plaintiff attorneys are managing a highly fragmented client base, and the opt-in process for a class of nearly 65,000 individuals presents logistical challenges independent of the legal uncertainty [1]. If participation falls short, Bayer may elect to litigate individual cases while awaiting the preemption ruling, a path that would extend the MDL's lifespan by years. A Supreme Court decision in *Monsanto v. Durnell* is expected before the term closes, and its language, whether broad or narrow, will set the terms of any future negotiation.
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