"Monday’s Supreme Court hearing over a federal law governing pesticide regulations left observers largely unsure how the court will rule in the case involving the former Monsanto company and the herbicide glyphosate, with many seeing the ultimate decision as too close to call.
The hearing featured a barrage of questions from the justices primarily targeting the lawyer representing Monsanto and a representative from the Department of Justice, which is siding with Monsanto in the case.
Justices pressed the lawyers on many fronts, including asking how new science indicating harm associated with a pesticide should be handled after a pesticide was already approved and on the market by federal regulators. Justices also cited prior rulings that could contradict the company’s arguments.
The scope and type of questions led some who had thought the odds were strongly in favor of Monsanto and its German owner Bayer to back off those predictions following the hearing."
