US Supreme Court rules 7-2 that federal pesticide law preempts state failure-to-warn claims in landmark Monsanto Roundup decision

The US Supreme Court issued a 7-2 ruling in the *Durnell* case on 25 June 2026, holding that the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) expressly preempts (overrides) state-law failure-to-warn claims where the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has made a definitive determination on product labelling. The majority opinion stated that requiring a cancer warning on Roundup's label would impose a requirement "in addition to" and "different from" what FIFRA mandates — the precise trigger for federal preemption. Monsanto (a subsidiary of Bayer) welcomed the ruling, which is expected to result in dismissal of existing failure-to-warn claims and foreclose future state-based claims — the majority of the Roundup litigation. Monsanto had previously announced a proposed nationwide class settlement, which received preliminary approval, as a parallel containment strategy. Bayer CEO Bill Anderson stated the ruling "brings overdue justice" after years of litigation consuming "many billions" in costs.

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