July 1, 2024
On June 27, 2024, the United States Supreme Court issued a ruling blocking a bankruptcy reorganization plan of Purdue Pharma, meaning that there is now uncertainty around billions of dollars of settlement money that had previously been secured for victims of the opioid crisis.
The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the bankruptcy court did not have the authority to protect the members of the Sackler Family, who previously owned Purdue Pharma, from any future legal claims by opioid victims.
As part of the original settlement, the Sackler family had agreed to pay $6 billion to settle opioid-related claims, in return for a complete release from any liability in future cases. However, now that agreement will need to be renegotiated, and cannot contain any such liability-protection clauses.
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