National Prescription Opioid Litigation News

How Insys Bankruptcy Case Could Alter Fate of Thousands of Opioid Lawsuits

The fate of thousands of lawsuits seeking to hold drugmakers responsible for fueling the U.S. opioid epidemic hinges in part on a thorny legal question: Can a company can use a bankruptcy to stop lawsuits from cities and states? U.S. …

Judge Open to ‘Novel’ Idea of Local Government Class for Opioid Settlement Talks

A judge backed a push by U.S. cities and counties suing opioid makers such as Purdue Pharma LP and Johnson & Johnson to negotiate a settlement as a group but put off until August a final decision on the request. …

Opioid Lawsuits Unlikely to Top Tobacco Settlements

An Oklahoma case, the first of more than 1,600 lawsuits filed by U.S. state and local governments against opioid makers to go to trial, could serve as a key benchmark for governments hoping to recoup costs associated with the public …

Reuters Report: How Judges’ Secrecy Has Added to Toll of Opioids and Other Products

WELCH, West Virginia β€”The opioid epidemic that has so far killed half a million Americans is routinely blamed on greedy drug makers, feckless doctors and lax regulators. But there’s another group that has contributed to the depth and duration of …

Billions at Stake from Opioid Suits but Damages Unlikely to Top $200B Tobacco Windfall

An Oklahoma case, the first of more than 1,600 lawsuits filed by U.S. state and local governments against opioid makers to go to trial, could serve as a key benchmark for governments hoping to recoup costs associated with the public …

Plaintiffs Suing Drug Firms Eye Opioid Settlement Involving Every County, Municipality

Lawyers representing county and municipal governments accusing drug manufacturers and distributors of fueling the U.S. opioid epidemic proposed a novel plan on Friday that would allow every community nationally to participate in negotiating billions of dollars in settlements. The proposal …

Opioid Litigation Tests Public Nuisance Claim Theory

Determining who foots the bill for America’s growing opioid epidemic may depend on how well the state of Oklahoma deploys a high-risk legal strategy this week against Johnson & Johnson and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. At least 42 states and …

Liability Test Case Against Opioid Makers Allowed to Move Forward

A lawsuit seeking to hold drugmakers and distributors responsible for a nationwide opioid epidemic should be allowed to move forward, a federal magistrate said in a preliminary ruling that may increase the likelihood of a settlement. Companies including Johnson & …

Judge Sets Schedule for Opioid Lawsuits Against Drug Companies

A federal judge pushing for a settlement in lawsuits seeking to hold drug companies responsible for their roles in the U.S. opioid epidemic on Wednesday set an aggressive schedule that would have the first trial take place in March 2019. …

Drugmaker Purdue Moves to Settle States’ Claims Over Opioids

Oxycontin maker Purdue Pharma LP is proposing a global settlement in an attempt to end state investigations and lawsuits over the U.S. opioid epidemic, according to people familiar with the talks. Purdue’s lawyers raised the prospect with several southern-state attorneys …