More than two decades after Purdue Pharma launched its blockbuster pain pill OxyContin, a judge approved a bankruptcy plan Wednesday that will grant the drugmaker’s billionaire owners sweeping legal immunity in the opioid epidemic.
Negotiated until the 11th hour, the final terms of the settlement confirmed by U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Robert D. Drain grant the family that owned Purdue Pharma, the Sacklers, broad protection from current and future litigation, despite objections from nine states and a branch of the Justice Department.
The family initially sought relief from any civil litigation, but Drain objected, shouting at one point over an attorney for the Sacklers that the family should be immune only to legal claims related to the crisis they are contributing roughly $4.3 billion to abate. The final settlement will grant relief specifically for claims related to the opioid epidemic.
