State AGs Challenge Generic Drugmakers’ Demand for Gag Order

A motion by a group of generic drugmakers for  a gag order against the states suing them for price-fixing would be unwarranted and unconstitutional, the states’ attorneys general said in a filing last week.

On Dec. 26, the generics manufacturers at the center of the multistate antitrust suit told a Philadelphia federal court that the plaintiffs, led by Louisiana and Connecticut’s attorneys general, violated ethics rules in their disclosures to media.

In their response, the AGs noted Pennsylvania Rules of Professional Conduct include a “safe harbor” provision allowing lawyers to make extrajudicial statements on various matters, including claims and defenses in litigation.