Roland Christensen

In the firm’s second trial against Bayer/Monsanto, Jason Itkin, Noah Wexler, and Roland Christensen, along with Thomas R. Kline, Chris Gomez, Melissa Merck, and Toby L. Millrood of Kline & Spector, won another historic verdict for another victim of Roundup, the world’s most infamous herbicide. Our firm’s relentless dedication to the truth led to the $2.25 billion verdict.

Monsanto had been hiding from the fact that Roundup causes cancer for decades. Bayer has maintained that Roundup was fundamentally safe to use despite a scientific consensus that Roundup can cause cancer, specifically non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Our client, John, used Roundup at both home and work, which exposed him to higher levels of glyphosate than most people. Of course, John felt he had nothing to fear because Monsanto had publicly said Roundup was safe even though its internal scientists knew that it was not.

Our team presented John’s story to a highly educated jury that considered the evidence carefully before deciding that John should receive $250 million in compensation and then awarding $2 billion in punitive damages against Monsanto/Bayer to deter them for their bad conduct.

This is the largest verdict against Monsanto or Bayer for Roundup. Our firm was proud we could help John and others hold one of the world’s largest companies accountable for deceptively poisoning Americans.

Karl and Laura Schneider had everything you could ask for. They’d met in high school, dated through college, and pursued successful careers. Karl was a company man for a drilling company after making toolpusher—one of the highest-ranking positions on a drilling rig—by his 35th birthday. He and Laura had settled down in New Hampshire, where they were raising their kids.

As part of his new job for Terra Energy, Karl was sent to work in the oilfields of Western Colorado. What his new employers didn’t disclose was the risk of a rare but preventable virus unique to the area: Hantavirus. The virus is carried in mouse droppings, urine, and saliva. Though highly fatal to humans, recognizing early signs increases the likelihood of survival; as long as the company took mitigation and prevention measures seriously through training and pest control, it wouldn’t be an issue.

Unfortunately, the company did none of those things.

Terra Energy not only allowed the workers’ living space and workspaces to become riddled with mice, but they didn’t even inform the workers about Hantavirus or its early symptoms—despite having a written policy about the dangers of Hantavirus and how to prevent it. Consequently, when Karl fell ill with Hantavirus in September 2019, he thought it was the flu and tried to work through it.

By the time he admitted himself to the ER, the virus had progressed too far to save his life.

He died that night, nearly two thousand miles away from his home and family.

Laura called us when it became clear the company was hiding something about Karl’s death. The CDC had investigated Karl’s cause of death and confirmed the obvious: Karl had contracted a strain of Hantavirus common to Western Colorado. Our investigation found that Terra Energy knew about the risk of Hantavirus; they even possessed safety documents inherited from the previous company that owned those facilities. Despite all this, the most they ever offered Laura was $200,000—an insulting amount given what she and her family lost.

Attorneys Caj Boatright and Roland Christensen found that unacceptable. They worked the case around the clock for years, cutting through delay tactic after delay tactic with relentless litigation.

After three years of dodging responsibility, a jury saw what we saw: a company that caused a good man’s death because they couldn’t be bothered to be honest with their employees. The court awarded Karl’s family $103.6 million and hit Terra Energy with another $105.6 million in punitive damages.

Our firm was proud to get justice for Karl’s family, honoring his memory by forcing the company to acknowledge their guilt publicly.

Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen obtained a $193,000,000 settlement for two offshore workers injured by a pipeline explosion. One of the injured workers eventually succumbed to his injuries and sadly passed away. After being hired, Arnold & Itkin immediately mobilized—investigating the incident, collecting evidence, and taking numerous depositions of the key witnesses in the case. Our firm navigated the case through the unique aspects of maritime law. Our expertise in this area of the law ensured that it moved quickly toward trial, which the negligent companies wanted to avoid at all costs. Rather than face a jury verdict, the companies relented and paid a settlement that will take care of these families for generations to come. In addition to pushing the case toward trial, Arnold & Itkin also helped our clients get the best care and support after such a tragic event. It is truly our privilege to represent hard-working families like these when everything is on the line for them.

Jason Itkin, Noah Wexler, and Roland Christensen, along with Thomas R. Kline, Chris Gomez, Melissa Merck, and Toby L. Millrood of Kline & Spector won a milestone verdict for our client in what was a turning point for the victims of Monsanto’s massively profitable weedkiller product.

For years, Monsanto (now Bayer) fought against policies based on growing scientific evidence that Roundup causes cancer. Multiple studies in the late 2010s showed a compelling link between glyphosate (the active ingredient in Roundup) and cancer—specifically non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. One 2019 study showed that glyphosate exposure led to a 41% higher chance of developing cancer.

Before this lawsuit, Monsanto had managed to avoid legal action from individuals who claimed that their cancer diagnosis was a result of exposure to Roundup. A number of these cases were combined into multidistrict litigation (MDL) in Philadelphia. In an MDL, the evidence and testimony presented in one case are applicable to all other cases that follow it. The degree to which a plaintiff is successful sets a precedent for all other plaintiffs. So, Jason knew we had to deliver for our client and all clients after.

For three weeks, our team made the case that Monsanto had a duty to warn users that exposure to Roundup likely caused cancer. “Monsanto knew exactly what it was doing when it chose not to warn people Roundup causes cancer,” Jason told the jury during trial.

“If they told people the truth, we wouldn’t be here in this courtroom.”

We presented our client’s story with compelling evidence, expert testimony, and every tool at our disposal—the result of years of preparation. After three weeks, the jury handed down a verdict that represented a genuine turning point in the fight to hold Roundup’s owners accountable: $25 million for our client in compensatory damages and $150 million in punitive damages against Bayer/Monsanto for failing to warn users of cancer risk. We won the first victory against Roundup in the Philadelphia MDL.

A $175 million verdict not only brought our client justice and financial security for the rest of his life, but it offered hope to the other victims of Roundup exposure who’ve yet to go to trial. It’s the victory that makes the years of preparation and patience worth it, and we could not be happier for our client.

Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen obtained a $125,000,000 settlement for the widow of a dredge worker who had been severely burned in an offshore explosion. Arnold & Itkin spared no expense in aggressively collecting and evaluating the evidence. Our firm also quickly took the depositions of critical company witnesses to prepare the case for trial. We likewise helped our clients obtain excellent support after such a tragic event. The threat of a jury trial ultimately forced the defendants to pay a settlement that will take care of our client and her family from here forward. Arnold & Itkin takes immense pride in pursuing justice for its clients when circumstances are catastrophic.

Attorneys Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen won a $77.5 million settlement for a Houston family man paralyzed in a workplace incident. Immediately after our firm was hired, we hired the industry’s best experts to investigate the incident and determine how and why it happened. Faced with overwhelming evidence proving their negligence, the defendants chose to pay a record settlement instead of facing a jury. Arnold & Itkin will do whatever it takes to ensure our clients and their families are taken care of in the face of catastrophic circumstances.

Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen obtained a $68,000,000 settlement for a Texas offshore worker injured in a pipeline explosion. Arnold & Itkin ensured our client received impeccable care for his injuries and that his family was supported after the incident. At the same time, our firm began an aggressive investigation and pushed toward trial—collecting critical evidence and deposing every key witness in the case. The negligent defendants had no choice but to avoid trial and settle the case for an amount that changed our client’s and his family’s lives forever. Arnold & Itkin takes pride in being the preeminent maritime law firm in the United States and using that expertise to pursue justice for its clients when tragedy strikes.

Attorneys Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, and Roland Christensen secured a record-setting $59.5 million settlement for two Texas farm workers injured in a collision with an 18-wheeler. Upon being hired, Arnold & Itkin filed the case, pursued an aggressive trial setting less than a year after the incident, and forced the defendants to settle just before the trial started. The firm is proud to have cared for these workers and their families for the rest of their lives, ensuring they will have excellent medical care and no financial worries despite their serious injuries.