More Lawsuits Over Monsanto Wheat Centralized to Kansas
KANSAS CITY (AP) - A lawsuit filed in Arkansas against Monsanto over the May 2013 discovery of an isolated field of genetically engineered wheat in Oregon has now landed in federal court in Kansas.
The assignment Thursday of the Arkansas case to U.S. District Judge Kathryn Vratil marks the latest transfer of litigation since a federal judicial panel centralized several lawsuits against St. Louis-based Monsanto. The consolidated pretrial proceedings are all in Kansas.
The panel first transferred four civil actions last October, and it has since transferred nine others.
Lawsuits were initially filed in Kansas, Oklahoma, Illinois, Missouri, Louisiana, Oregon, Texas, Mississippi, Washington, Arkansas and Idaho.
Monsanto has contended no legal liability exists given the care undertaken, and it has vowed to present a vigorous defense to the lawsuits.