The Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council and Mid-America Research and Development Foundation won a $602,945 judgement today in a lawsuit against AgBorn Genetics LLC.

The jury verdict in the Circuit Court of Jackson County was unanimous. In a statement, the MSMC said the groups brought the lawsuit "to protect Missouri soybean farmers' investments in soybean research under the soybean checkoff program"

PROTECTING GROWERS: MSMC fought to protect growers investment in the soybean checkoff when it filed a suit against AgBorn Genetics for using MSMC's soybean technologies.

AgBorn Genetics is expected to pay the nearly $603,000, not including interest and costs, based on royalties owed for undisclosed and unreported sales of MSMC's soybean seed technologies and for unpaid and bounced royalty checks issued by AgBorn Genetics, signed by its general manager Alex Stemme. Stemme once worked with the Missouri Soybean Association as its director of identity preservation.

Earlier in the case, the Court granted summary judgment in favor of MSMC and MRDF on their claims to invalidate two agreements that AgBorn Genetics claimed to be valid contracts, according to a news release. The Court ruled that both contracts were void and unenforceable. These rulings found that AgBorn Genetics has no rights to MSMC's soybean seed technologies.

According to MSMC, "these judgments confirm MSMC's concerted and ongoing efforts to defend and enforce the Missouri soybean farmers' rights to all their soybean seed technologies developed through checkoff investments."

MSMC chairman David Lueck says the case is an important one for soybean farmers. "We take our responsibility to manage growers' soybean checkoff dollars very seriously and will continue to take any necessary steps to ensure farmers receive the benefit of their investments in the checkoff," the Lafayette County soybean farmer says. "There's no excuse for anything less."