West Virginia State Opioid Claims Will Be Heard By A Jury and Tennessee Appeals Court Won't Halt Endo Pharmaceuticals’ $2.4B Opioid Trial

Two separate courts in the southern United States ruled on pending litigation trials involving Endo Pharmaceuticals and claims of harmful opioid distribution. Endo Pharmaceuticals is facing public nuisance claims relating to their alleged harmful marketing practices for opioids in West Virginia, and pending liability damages related to opioid distribution for $2.4 billion in Tennessee. Both cases are unrelated to the current multi-district litigation trials in West Virginia.

The West Virginia Supreme Court had originally ruled that that the public nuisance claims would be litigated in a bench trial, and Endo Pharmaceuticals, along with other large pharmaceutical and retail companies, filed and subsequently won a writ of prohibition, allowing the case to be heard by a jury. A Tennessee appellate court ruled that the default judgement against Endo Pharmaceuticals in connection with a 2017 case filed by three Tennessee district attorneys and the plaintiff’s guardian, can continue and denied the motion by the company to stay the lower court’s proceedings.

• To read the West Virginia article, please click here.
• To read the Opinion, please click here.
• To read the Tennessee article, please click here.
• To read the Order Denying Stay, please click here.