Weekly Mass Torts Bulletin 2022-Jan-03

Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. has agreed to pay $63 million to the state of Texas over the allegations that the company fueled the opioid epidemic devastating thousands of lives.

The settlement resolves two cases brought against the Endo subsidiaries that were consolidated in litigation in Texas state court. The company's main focus is to make a global opioid settlement or to provide alternative strategies if it fails to attain global deal.

The spokesperson for Endo said that the settlement does not include the company's admission of wrongdoing or liability in the lawsuit. Attorney General Ken Paxton explained that precise results from the investigation in the lawsuit claimed that the manufacturers are liable to the settlement as they fueled the opioid crisis in the state by using deceptive marketing strategies that resulted in disrupting the lives of victims and families. The settlement would help the state to heal from the devastating opioid crisis.

Earlier, a Tennessee state judge in April found that Endo was liable for holding back documents to get the opioid trial in their favor. The judge even held the law defendants' law firm responsible for making false claims.

In a similar lawsuit in New York state, Endo agreed on a $50 million settlement with the state. As per the settlement, New York state will get $22.3 million and the Long Island counties of Nassau and Suffolk will receive $27.7 million.

Endo even reached a $7.5 million deal with the Louisiana attorney general to resolve opioid claims throughout the state.

Teva Pharmaceuticals has been held responsible for fueling the opioid crisis in the New York state as per the ruling by a New York jury in Suffolk County State Supreme Court.

As per the jury's ruling, Teva is responsible for creating a public nuisance in Suffolk and Nassau counties by oversupplying opioids. It is the second verdict from the nationwide opioid crisis litigation.

Another trial would be held to decide upon the settlement amount that Teva requires to pay along with different opioid manufacturers and distributors who will pay $1.5 billion as declared by the state's attorney general. Teva has strongly opposed the agreement and has indicated to appeal against it.

As per the California ruling of last month, Teva did not make any false statements in the marketing of opioids and did not cause a public nuisance in Orange County, Los Angeles County, Santa Clara County and the City of Oakland.

Last month, judgment against a pharmaceutical manufacturer that ruled the public nuisance law does extend to the marketing and selling of prescription opioids was overturned by the Oklahoma Supreme Court.

The New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against opioid manufacturers in March 2019 for fueling the opioid epidemic throughout the nation. The defendants in the lawsuit include Mallinckrodt LLC and its affiliates, Janssen Pharmaceuticals and its affiliates, Endo Health Solutions and its affiliates, Allergan Finance, LLC and its affiliates and Purdue Pharma and its affiliates.

Since 1999, the opioid crisis has resulted in many deaths in the U.S. The opioid crisis was caused because of the opioid oversupply of major drug distributors for making profits.

Milwaukee County is set to receive a landmark settlement of $71 million as an agreement that will address the opioid epidemic in the county.

The settlement amount will be used for abatement, treatment, and awareness of opioid issues. It is a part of multi-district litigation filed in the Northern District of Ohio against the opioid makers. The county will receive the amount over the next 18 years.

According to the counsel of Milwaukee County Corporation, the agreement is an important development in the county's move to address the nationwide epidemic, which increased during the pandemic. Milwaukee County recorded 83 deaths in 2002 because of opioid abuse, and it is on track to record 500 deaths in 2021.

The agreement came after more than a year of careful negotiation with national class representatives, state attorneys general, defendants, local governments, Governor and State Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee.

Southeast Wisconsin is set to receive more than $140 million to address the opioid crisis, and the funds will be released either in the first or second quarter of 2022 as soon as all the litigating jurisdictions sign the settlement.

In 2017, the nation's second-biggest legal settlement to address the opioid crisis was announced, where AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson and drugmaker Johnson & Johnson have agreed to pay $26 billion to the thousands of other towns across the U.S.

Lawrence County Commissioners agreed on a settlement with Johnson & Johnson (J&J) to address the ongoing opioid epidemic in the county that has claimed several lives.

One of the commissioners of the county informed that state attorney generals of different states are in negotiation talks to decide on a potential nationwide opioid settlement.

As per the estimates, the settlement would be worth as much as $26 billion of which, Pennsylvania is expected to receive $1 billion. Lawrence County will receive $6.8 million from the settlement amount over the next 15-18 years. The settlement amount would be available as early as August or September 2022 as soon as it gets resolved.

Previously board of commissioners filed an independent opioid lawsuit hoping that the county could get more settlement amount, but now one of the commissioners believes that accepting this settlement will be the best option for the county.

As per the agreement, the settlement amount would go to a trust which would be overseen by a 13-person board that will include a County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania's representative.

Commissioners even explained that the money could be used to conduct awareness programs for opioid-affected people and prevent future opioid addictions. The settlement would also covet the losses faced by the county till the date because of the opioid crisis.

The agreement even requires signs from over 10,000 residents from any municipality to get it completely approved and get a full settlement amount of $6.8 million.

Two IVC filter cases that were directly filed into the multidistrict litigation docket involving Cook Medical Inc. have been reinstated by a federal appellate panel as they are governed by the law of their originating jurisdictions.

The plaintiffs involved in the lawsuit sued Cook.Inc for the injuries caused to them because of the company's inferior vena cava filters. The suits were filed directly in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana for observing consolidated pretrial proceedings.

A judge explained that the case highlights the importance of a written order at the outset of multidistrict litigation that discusses ground rules for the cases filed by the injured parties. The statement even highlighted that direct filing helps the judicial efficiency but can also result in complications at times by affecting the personal jurisdiction, venue and choice of law.

The choice of law rules differs for all three jurisdictions specifying the substantive law of the state. According to the court, there is a three-year statute of limitations for South Carolina, whereas Indiana has a two-year statute of limitations.

Cook requested the MDL court to consider Indiana’s choice-of-law rules for the suit, but the court eventually dismissed the two cases as untimely.

An attorney for the plaintiffs stated that earlier, Cook argued for choice of law rules from the originating jurisdictions in seven direct-filed cases in the MDL. The attorney even said that the plaintiff may tailor the litigation strategy and should not be restricted based on a retroactive change of the ground rules.