Tuesday’s ruling came more than a year after oral arguments before the panel of the Second Circuit. As the months go by, thousands continue to face promised payments being withheld and lawsuits remaining unresolved, even as the opioid epidemic itself, characterized by fentanyl use, continues to soar. Dozens of litigants complained.
The ruling was in favor of the City of Purdue, which appealed against a federal district judge’s decision to reverse a settlement originally approved by a bankruptcy court judge. 2021. However, most of the parties who had challenged the 2021 plan eventually dropped their objections after the Sacklers increased their payment offer by about $1.73 billion.
The only remaining opponents include several Canadian municipalities, a few individuals, and the U.S. Trustees, a program of the Department of Justice that oversees the bankruptcy system. Ms. Jacoby, a North Carolina law professor, said the U.S. Trustee’s argument to pursue the case was weak because the last opposing state agreed with the Purdue plan.
The U.S. Trustee declined to comment on Tuesday’s ruling.
In a statement following the judgment, he said: Purdue He called the decision “a win for Purdue’s creditors, including the overwhelmingly supportive states, local governments and victims.” plan Reorganization. ”
“Our focus going forward is to provide billions of dollars of value in victim compensation, mitigation of the opioid crisis and overdose relief,” the statement continued. “Our creditors believe that this plan is the best option to help those most in need, the fairest and fastest way to resolve lawsuits, and specifically to fund efforts to mitigate the opioid crisis. We understand it’s the only way we can provide billions of dollars in value to deliver.”
The families of the two brothers of the city of Purdue’s founders, Dr. Mortimer and Dr. Raymond Sackler, both deceased, said in a joint statement: community in need. We are pleased with the court’s decision to allow the agreement to move forward and look forward to it taking effect as soon as possible. ”
