Drugmakers, States Say Attorney Fee Proposal Would Jeopardize Opioid MDL Settlement

Opioid makers and 37 Attorneys General told an Ohio federal court that proposed attorney fees could derail a global settlement in the opioid multidistrict litigation.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs proposed that the defendants guarantee a 7 percent fee payment on the global settlement that would amount to $3.3 billion if the proposed $48 billion global settlement framework pans out. The proposed framework was first disclosed in October.

Drugmakers argued the proposed fee would “seriously jeopardize” the global settlement and “divert billions of settlement dollars that should be used to address the opioid crisis.”