TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Kate Prince on Jul 29, 2021

Days before a jury trial was set to begin, opioid manufacturer Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. has agreed to pay $35 million over its role in the state’s opioid epidemic, the Associated Press reports. Nine counties and 18 cities and towns in northeast Tennessee and a child born dependent on opioids, nicknamed Baby Doe, had originally sued Endo for $2.4 billion. An attorney for the plaintiffs, Gerard Stranch of Nashville’s Branstetter, Stranch & Jennings, said the settlement was the drug maker’s “last, best and final” offer. He added that a jury verdict could have tied the money up on appeal or the company could have declared bankruptcy. Sullivan County Chancellor E.G. Moody previously entered a rare default judgement in April, ruling the pharmaceutical company was liable despite lack of a civil trial.  Moody said he entered the ruling due to a “coordinated effort” by Endo and its attorneys to delay proceedings and interfere with the administration of justice. The counties will each receive a lump sum big enough to fund mobile addiction units and the money for Baby Doe will be placed in a trust fund.