On Wednesday, New York Attorney General Letitia James issued a press release indicating that the Suffolk County State Supreme Court ordered to begin the jury selection in January 2021 over the state's opioid epidemic trial against multiple drugmakers and distributors who are alleged of fueling the nationwide addiction problems.
The hearing was held via video conferencing, which had over 60 attendees, including the government and attorneys representing drugmakers Johnson & Johnson's Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Endo Health Solutions, Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., and Allergan Finance LLC, as well as distributors McKesson Corp., Cardinal Health Inc., AmerisourceBergen Drug Corp., and Rochester Drug Cooperative Inc.
New York state court Justice Jerry Garguilo stated that the court is anxious to start the trial for which the jury selection will be followed by opening statements in February or March. The judge compared the 3,000 federal opioid litigation cases and several hundred state cases to a gigantic gelatinous monster based on a classic 1958 sci-fi horror film, 'The Blob.'
The trial initially set to begin on March 20, 2020, got delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which grew rapidly across New York. Apart from the manufacturers and distributors mentioned, the suit also names Purdue Pharma, the Sackler family, and Mallinckrodt, for whom cases are moving separately through U.S. Bankruptcy Court.
Last week, Purdue Pharma LP agreed to plead guilty to three criminal charges over its involvement in the nation’s opioid crisis. The company will also pay $8.3 billion to settle federal probes over its marketing practices of the highly addictive painkiller. Additionally, the Sackler family would have to pay a separate $225 million civil settlement to the government immediately, and another $250 million after its bankruptcy concludes.
