Welcome to Critical Mass, Law.com's weekly briefing for class action and mass tort attorneys. Monsanto lost a $265 million jury verdict—and it wasn't about Roundup. Months after a hearing, House Democrats introduced a bill to stem "snap removals." Find out who filed the sexual assault class action against Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard.

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The Monsanto Co. logo sits on a sign outside the Roundup herbicide manufacturing facility in Antwerp, Belgium. Photographer: Jasper Juinen/Bloomberg

Could There Be A Dicamba Deluge?

Monsanto Co. got hit with a $265 million punitive damages verdict—but this time, it wasn't over Roundup. A federal jury in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, came back with a $15 million award on Friday, followed by $250 million in punitive damages on Saturday against Bayer AG, which owns Monsanto, and BASF.

The verdict, which Bayer said on Monday it would "swiftly appeal," comes in the first trial over dicamba, a pesticide that allegedly spreads to non-resistant crops, causing economic damages to farmers.

Joseph Peiffer (Peiffer Wolf Carr & Kane), who represented the plaintiff, a Missouri peach farmer, told me there were hundreds of lawsuits pending in multidistrict litigation before U.S. District Judge Stephen Limbaugh (who, by the way, is the cousin of conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh). He expected thousands to be filed in the coming months.

About the verdict, he told me:

"I was delighted and, frankly, a little surprised that the jury came back so quickly with a number that was $50 million over what was asked for in punitive damages, which meant they were outraged by Monsanto and BASF's conduct. We asked for $200 million, and they gave us $250 milion. I didn't talk to them, but it doesn't take Albert Einstein or a jury consultant to understand when that happens it's because they want to send a message. It's one thing to make a mistake, it's another thing to recklessly destroy farmers' entire livelihoods."

Arthur Hellman.

A Snapshot of the "Snapback" Bill

Three months after Congress held a hearing over "snap removals," Democratic members of the House of Representatives introduced a bill that would limit the practice, often used in product liability cases.

A quick backgrounder: A "snap removal," approved by at least two federal circuit courts of appeal, refers to when defendants remove certain cases to federal court before being "properly joined and served" with a lawsuit in state court. Plaintiffs' attorneys deride the tactic, while the defense bar says they're countering forum shopping.

Here's what Arthur Hellman (University of Pittsburgh School of Law), who testified about "snap removals" on Capitol Hill, told me about the "snapback" bill—officially titled H.R. 5801, the Removal Jurisdiction Clarification Act of 2020:

"The bill incorporates the 'snapback' proposal that originated in a law review article by five professors, including myself. The original version has been modified in several respects to address concerns that were expressed at the November hearing and in post-hearing discussions. I believe that the snapback mechanism established by H.R. 5801 will address the problem described at the hearing without opening new loopholes or generating uncertainty about other aspects of removal practice."

Who Got the Work?

Greg Gutzler, Amy Keller, Mark DiCello, and Adam Levitt (DiCello Levitt Gutzler) and Lisa Haba (Haba Law Firm) filed the latest class action over sexual assault, against Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard. The complaint, filed on Feb. 13, alleges Nygard drugged and raped women, many younger than 18, usually at his home in the Bahamas. Nygard's Winnipeg attorney, Jay Prober, has denied the allegations, which also include sex trafficking, and blamed the accusations on a conspiracy involving hedge fund billionaire Louis Bacon.

Here's what else is happening:

Equal Treatment: Objectors to the Equifax class action settlement are firing back after they got an earful from the judge who approved the $1.4 billion deal last month. In motions to amend the judgment, and notices planning to appeal the settlement's approval, objectors and their lawyers defended themselves and their profession. However, one objector and frequent critic of class actions, Ted Frank (Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute), said his appeal would focus on legal arguments, not personal attacks. "Other district court judges have said worse things about us, and it didn't stop us from winning reversals," he said.

Amsterdam Addition: Hausfeld plans to open an office in Amsterdam on March 1 after acquiring Dutch litigation boutique Zippro Meijer. The office is Hausfeld's seventh in Europe, with others in Paris, London and Brussels. Another plaintiffs' firm, Scott + Scott, opened an Amsterdam office last year. Hausfeld Advocaten opens as The Netherlands has expanded the use of collective actions – Europe's version of class actions. "This will create greater access for Dutch and other citizens and businesses across Europe and elsewhere to seek redress individually and collectively for harms suffered from competition infringements and other illegal conduct," Chairman Michael Hausfeld said.

Max 8 Turbulence: Boeing is fighting a subpoena to depose one of its corporate representatives in the lawsuits over the Ethiopian Airlines crash last year involving its grounded 737 Max 8 aircraft. Plaintiffs' lawyers want to know why Boeing produced certain discovery materials to Congress in its investigation of the Max 8, but not to them. Boeing is raising attorney client privilege, among other things, and a hearing is set for Wednesday in federal court in Chicago.

Thanks for reading Critical Mass! I'll be back next week.