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Bayer Gets Roundup Reprieve as Damages Cut in California

Jury’s punitive damages are ruled excessive under precedent
Judge says evidence shows company focused on attacking critics

Roundup products — Roundup products
Photographer: Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images

By

Joel Rosenblatt

July 15, 2019, 10:04 PM UTCUpdated onJuly 16, 2019, 7:21 AM UTC

Bayer AG won a reprieve as a federal judge cut a verdict linking its Roundup weedkiller to cancer by $55 million, while the German company continues to fight thousands of lawsuits in the U.S.

The stock rose as much as 2.4% in Frankfurt trading after U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria ruled Monday that the March verdict intended to punish the company was too high.