(Reuters) — The U.S. Supreme Court could announce as soon as Monday whether it will hear Bayer’s bid to dismiss claims its Roundup weedkiller causes cancer as the company seeks to avoid potentially billions of dollars more in damages and payouts.

Bayer is seeking review of an appeals court decision that upheld $25 million in damages awarded to California resident Edwin Hardeman, a user of glyphosate-based weedkiller Roundup, who blamed his cancer on the product.

How the court acts will help determine whether thousands of similar cases go forward.

The nine justices at their private conference on Thursday were scheduled to discuss whether to hear the case, according to the court docket. The court is due to announce action on pending appeals on Monday morning, although sometimes a case is held over for various reasons, including if the justices are inclined to hear it.

Bayer has asked the Supreme Court to find that federal approval of Roundup's product label by the Environmental Protection Agency meant that the suit could not be brought forward under California's state law.

The court's decision will come after the Biden administration urged the justices last month to reject the petition, reversing the position taken by the Trump administration, which had largely backed Bayer. 

The company's shares dropped more than 6% that day but have since recovered even as Bayer braces for up to $4.5 billion in additional litigation costs from the other claims if snubbed by the court.

It set money aside accordingly last year, having already paid out a big portion of the $11.6 billion previously allocated for settlements and litigation over the matter.

Credit Suisse analysts said Thursday they see a low probability of the case being heard, noting, along with the Biden administration's stance, that the highest U.S. court accepts less than 1% of petitioned cases.

Bayer has lost three trials, awarding Roundup users tens of millions of dollars each, but has also won three.

Roundup-related lawsuits have dogged Bayer since it acquired the brand as part of its $63 billion purchase of agricultural seeds and pesticides maker Monsanto in 2018.