News
Purdue Pleads Guilty to Felonies, Plea Deal Receives Criticism
Purdue Pharma pleads guilty to criminal charges for illegal marketing of the its highly addictive painkiller, OxyContin. Corporations often pay penalties and fines for wrongdoing, yet criminal charges are rare. These charges include
PA Supreme Court Upholds $70 Million Risperdal Verdict
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has denied Johnson & Johnson’s request to overturn the $70 million Risperdal verdict upheld by a Superior court panel of judges last year. The case, A.Y. v. Janssen Pharmaceuticals,
Appeals Court Upholds Block of Drug Pricing Transparency
A DC Circuit court upheld a federal judge’s ruling striking down the Department of Health and Human Services’ new rule requiring drug companies to disclose the price of a 30 day supply in
Pharmacies Face New Suit In Opioids Crisis
A new court filing against big American pharmacy retailers has been submitted in the multi-district litigation in Ohio Federal Court overseen by Judge Dan Polster. The complaint accuses major pharmacies, including CVS, Rite
$8 Billion Risperdal Verdict Tops Legal News in 2019
April 2020 Update: Stephen Sheller has been recognized by the American Association for Justice with AAJ’s 2019 Top Verdict Award. “Each year, American Association for Justice releases the Top Verdicts Litigation Packet, featuring
DOJ Blocks Criminal Charges Against Walmart in Opioid Crisis
A recent ProPublica investigative report calls into question the Trump Administration’s commitment to ending the opioid crisis, criminally charging those responsible, and ensuring that protections are in place to prevent another crisis. Even
Risperdal Case Reinstated After Janssen Appeal Denied
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court declined to hear Janssen Pharmacuetical’s request for an appeal of a lower courts decision to reinstate the lawsuit of a Texas man who took Risperdal as a child. The Pennsylvania Superior Court’s decision to allow
Pharma Execs Admits to Deceptive Marketing of Opioids
In a rare admission to PBS Frontline & the Finical Times, a pharmaceutical executive acknowledged that he knowingly orchestrated an illegal scheme to boost sales of a powerful opiate painkiller believing there would be no
Plaintiff’s Counsel Vows to Have $8B Risperdal Verdict Reinstated
Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Kenneth Powell reduced an October 2019 $8 billion punitive damages verdict against J&J to $6.8 million. A jury had awarded the figure over allegations that J&J’s drug
State and Local Lawmakers Goals Conflict in Opioid Litigation
Plaintiffs’ in the multi-district litigation, which consisting of more than 2,500 cities and counties, suing opioid manufacturers and distributors for their role in the opioid crisis find they have conflicting goals with state lawmakers