Bayer Statement on Monsanto’s Motion to Reverse Bifurcate in Pilliod
The following is Bayer’s statement regarding Monsanto’s motion to reverse bifurcate in Pilliod v. Monsanto Company, litigation that is pending in the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Alameda before Judge Winifred Y. Smith.
“Reverse bifurcation would ensure that the jury’s decision on medical causation is driven by the extensive scientific evidence and the plaintiffs’ medical histories. The jury should conduct its own assessment of the key causation evidence without the risk of confusion from various third party evaluations of that evidence, especially because regulators and IARC apply different statutory or other criteria in their evaluations. This approach would have the benefit of avoiding undue prejudice to the parties and juror confusion on the issue of causation. Bayer is confident in the science behind the safety of its glyphosate-based herbicides and believes it will ultimately be determinative in this litigation.”