HONOLULU – Hawai‘i Attorney General Holly T. Shikada announced that the Court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania ruled that forty-two States, led by Wisconsin, can proceed with their litigation against the makers of Suboxone.
“The court appropriately rejected two extensive summary judgment motions filed by the defendant Indivior PLC, providing a very comprehensive analysis of the issues raised by Indivior and evidence presented by the plaintiffs,” Attorney General Shikada said. “The opinion paves the way for the multi-state group to proceed to trial to further present evidence showing that Indivior’s conduct harmed consumers.”
In a sweeping ruling, the Federal District Court denied defendant Indivior Inc.’s Motion for Summary Judgment, holding that there were facts and favorable law for plaintiffs to proceed. Noting that the volume of facts required “enormous judicial resources” to wade through, in an 86-page opinion, the Court denied all defendant’s motions for summary judgment, and held in the States’ favor.
The States allege that Indivior Inc. used illegal means to switch the Suboxone market from tablets to film while attempting to destroy the market for tablets, in order to preserve its drug monopoly. A trial has not yet been scheduled but is expected next year.
A link to the decision can be found here.
Attorney General Shikada is joined in this litigation by the attorneys general of Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
Original source can be found here.
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