Johnson & Johnson Ordered to Pay $572 Million for Claimed Collusion in Opioid Addiction in Oklahoma Case

And this seems to be only Oklahoma.

That means there are 49 other possible judgments, not including US territories or foreign countries. And most of those will have populations much larger than Oklahoma's.

An Oklahoma judge on Monday found Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiaries helped fuel the state’s opioid drug crisis and ordered the consumer products giant to pay $572 million to help abate the problem in the coming years.

Cleveland County District Judge Thad Balkman’s ruling followed the first state opioid case to make it to trial and could help shape negotiations over roughly 1,500 similar lawsuits filed by state, local and tribal governments consolidated before a federal judge in Ohio.

"The opioid crisis has ravaged the state of Oklahoma," Balkman said before announcing the verdict. "It must be abated immediately."

The companies are expected to appeal the ruling to the Oklahoma Supreme Court.

Before Oklahoma's trial began May 28, Oklahoma reached settlements with two other defendant groups -- a $270 million deal with OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma and an $85 million settlement with Israeli-owned Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.

posted by Ace of Spades at 06:05 PM

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