Monsanto May Have Contractor Defense to PCB Pollution Claims

A lawsuit alleging that Monsanto Co. polluted Illinois waterways with polychlorinated biphenyls can stay in federal court, a judge ruled, finding that the company may be entitled to a government contractor defense.

Illinois sued the Bayer AG-owned company, in addition to Solutia Inc. and Pharmacia LLC, alleging that the companies caused statewide contamination of Illinois’s natural resources by selling and distributing PCBs. Monsanto produced substantial volumes of PCB mixtures and engaged in reckless and unlawful methods of waste disposal, which leaked into the Mississippi River and other waterways, the lawsuit said.

Monsanto removed the case from the Circuit Court ...