Supreme Court sides with Monsanto in case over cancer risks from weedkiller Roundup
Updated on: June 25, 2026 / 7:48 PM EDT / CBS News
TL;DR
- The Supreme Court ruled that Monsanto cannot be sued under state laws for failing to warn about alleged cancer risks on Roundup labels.
- A federal law, FIFRA, was found to preempt state lawsuits concerning Roundup's labeling.
- The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers Roundup safe and does not require a cancer warning on its label.
- The ruling is expected to block thousands of lawsuits from consumers who claimed Roundup caused cancer.
- Bayer, which owns Monsanto, views the decision as a victory for regulatory clarity and stated it will continue pursuing a $7.25 billion settlement to resolve Roundup litigation.
- The case involved John Durnell, who sued Monsanto after developing non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, alleging exposure to Roundup for over 20 years.
- While the EPA deems glyphosate safe, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified it as 'probably carcinogenic to humans' in 2015, a classification the EPA later disagreed with.