Opioid Ruling Could Send Purdue, Drugmakers to Court
- New York judge shoots down companies’ suit-dismissal request
- Local governments seek to recoup costs tied to opioid epidemic
Bottles of Purdue Pharma L.P. OxyContin medication.
Photographer: George Frey/Bloomberg
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Purdue Pharma LP, Johnson & Johnson and other opioid makers faced one of the first extensive reviews of their legal defenses to claims they violated consumer-protection laws and created a public nuisance with the sale of the pain killers. They lost.
New York state court Judge Jerry Garguilo on Monday rejected the pharma companies’ requests for the lawsuits to be thrown out on a myriad of grounds, concluding lawyers for eight counties could move forward with their claims.