Monsanto files notice of appeal in $78M judgment in personal injury case

Monsanto's parent company has filed a notice of appeal of a $78 million judgment in a personal injury and product liability lawsuit by a cancer-stricken groundskeeper.

Attorneys for Bayer AG, which acquired Monsanto Co. in June, are challenging an Oct. 22 order from San Francisco County Superior Court Judge Suzanne R. Bolanos that awarded plaintiff Dewayne Lee Johnson $78 million.

A jury in August awarded Johnson $39 million in compensatory damages and $250 million in punitive damages. Monsanto's attorneys asked Bolanos to overrule all punitive damages, but the judge instead asked Johnson if he wanted to reduce the amount to approximately $39 million or hold a new trial. He chose the reduction.

Johnson is represented by Pedram Esfandiary at Baum, Hedlund, Aristei & Goldman PC.

The firm said in a statement last month that it disagreed with Bolanos' decision but accepted it to allow Johnson, who has non-Hodgkin lymphoma, to "hopefully achieve a final resolution within his lifetime."

"We expect Monsanto to appeal, notwithstanding, so we will address all issues regarding the verdict and the amount of damages at the Court of Appeal," according to the plaintiff firm's Oct. 26 statement.

Monsanto's attorneys include Sandra A. Edwards and Joshua W. Malone of Farella Braun & Martel LLP, George C. Lombardi of Winston & Strawn LLP, and attorneys with Hollingsworth LLP.

Edwards filed the notice of appeal on Tuesday. Johnson v. Monsanto, CGC-16-004995 (San Francisco Super. Ct., filed Jan. 28, 2016).