US Supreme Court halts Purdue Pharma bankruptcy settlement pending review
The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear a challenge by President Joe Biden's administration to the legality of OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma's bankruptcy settlement, putting on hold a deal that would shield its wealthy Sackler family owners from lawsuits over their role in the country's opioid epidemic.
The justices paused bankruptcy proceedings concerning Purdue and its affiliates and said they would hold oral arguments in December in the administration's appeal of a lower court's ruling upholding the settlement. The Supreme Court's new term begins in October.
At issue is whether U.S. bankruptcy law allows Purdue's restructuring to include legal protections for the members of the Sackler family, who have not filed for personal bankruptcy.
Purdue filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2019 to address its debts, nearly all of which stemmed from thousands of lawsuits alleging that OxyContin helped kickstart an opioid epidemic that has caused more than 500,000 U.S. overdose deaths over two decades.
https://www.reuters.com/legal/us-supreme-court-scrutinize-purdue-pharma-bankruptcy-settlement-2023-08-10/
Supreme Court blocks Purdue Pharma’s massive opioid settlement, will hear challenge
The Supreme Court on Thursday blocked, for now, a multi-billion-dollar bankruptcy settlement by Purdue Pharma that would protect its Sackler family owners from civil lawsuits related to the opioid crisis.
The Supreme Court also said it will hear a U.S. Bankruptcy trustee’s challenge to the settlement by Purdue, the maker of the opioid OxyContin, with all 50 U.S. states, and other parties.
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/08/10/supreme-court-blocks-purdue-pharmas-6-billion-opioid-settlement-will-hear-challenge.html
OxyContin maker expected 'a blizzard of prescriptions' following drug's launch
A member of the Sackler family, which owns OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma, told people gathered at the prescription opioid painkiller’s launch party that the event would be “followed by a blizzard of prescriptions that will bury the competition”.
“The prescription blizzard will be so deep, dense, and white.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/jan/15/oxycontin-purdue-pharma-massachusetts-opioid-crisis
Sackler family wins immunity from opioid lawsuits
The billionaire owners of Purdue Pharma will be protected from lawsuits linked to the US opioid crisis in exchange for a $6bn (£4.85bn) settlement.
Purdue, which filed for bankruptcy in 2019 amid thousands of lawsuits, made drugs like OxyContin and is blamed for fueling the crisis.
On Tuesday, an appeals court ruled that its owners, the Sackler family, would receive full immunity from civil suits.
In exchange, they will pay $6bn to help address opioid addiction.
A 2021 investigation by the US House Oversight Committee indicated that members of the family, "who have owned a controlling share of Purdue Pharma since 1952, are collectively worth a total of $11bn".