Attempt to resolve class-action lawsuit against Monsanto fails after several hundred plaintiffs attend court-ordered mediation Dec. 27 in Charleston, West Virginia; plaintiffs seek medical monitoring for alleged exposure to dioxin from company plant

Alison Gallant

CHARLESTON, West Virginia , December 28, 2011 (Associated Press) – Another attempt to resolve a West Virginia class-action pollution lawsuit against Monsanto Co. has failed.

Media outlets report that several hundred plaintiffs attended a court-ordered mediation Tuesday at a Charleston hotel. No settlement was reached.

An earlier mediation in October also ended without a settlement.

The case involves current and former Nitro residents who claim dioxin from a former Monsanto plant polluted residential properties and streams. The lawsuit seeks medical monitoring for at least 5,000 people.

Jury selection for the trial is set to begin next week.

The state Supreme Court appointed Mercer County Circuit Court Judge Derek Swope to preside over the trial after Putnam County Circuit Court Judge O.C. Spaulding stepped aside. Spaulding has been diagnosed with ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease.

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