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Purdue Pharma looking for 'resolution' to 2,000 opioid lawsuits

By Clyde Hughes

Aug. 28 (UPI) -- In the wake of a landmark opioid ruling this week, the owners of Purdue Pharma are seriously considering a mega-settlement that would pay between $10 billion and $12 billion and bankrupt the company.

Purdue is involved in negotiations with at least 10 state attorneys general, NBC News reported, and they're weighing a plan in which the pharmaceutical giant would pay the settlement and go into Chapter 11 bankruptcy and restructure as a for-profit "public benefit trust."

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The structure would allocate all profits from the trust's drug sales, including Purdue's opioid painkiller OxyContin, for the plaintiffs -- which include states, cities and tribes involved in the suit.

Purdue told BBC News Tuesday it's "actively working" toward a "global resolution."

The plan would require the Sackler family, which owns Purdue, to give up ownership and pay $3 billion for the settlement. Forbes ranks the Sackler family as the 19th richest in the United States with a net worth of $13 billion.

An agreement would allow Purdue to enter into a global settlement to end all litigation. U.S. District Judge Dan Polster, who's overseen some of the 2,000 suits, has pushed both sides toward a settlement.

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"While Purdue Pharma is prepared to defend itself vigorously in the opioid litigation, the company has made clear that it sees little good coming from years of wasteful litigation and appeals," Purdue said in a statement.

"The people and communities affected by the opioid crisis need help now. Purdue believes a constructive global resolution is the best path forward, and the company is actively working with the state attorneys general and other plaintiffs to achieve this outcome."

A potential settlement follows a landmark ruling Monday, in which U.S. District Court Judge Thad Balkman ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay Oklahoma $573 million for its role in the opioid crisis. Balkman said J&J compromised the health and safety of thousands of Oklahomans by marketing and promoting its drugs. The company said it plans to appeal the decision.

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