The U.S. Supreme Court blocked a nationwide settlement with Purdue Pharma that was designed to shield members of the Sackler family — who own the company that makes OxyContin — from civil lawsuits over the fallout of the long-running opioid crisis.
The move came in response to a request from the Biden administration to halt a bankruptcy plan that had been reached with numerous state and local governments around the country. The arrangement would provide immunity for the Sacklers in exchange for a contribution of up to $6 billion to the proposed settlement.
But the U.S. Trustee, whose office oversees the administration of bankruptcy cases for the U.S. Department of Justice, objected to the plan over concerns that the immunity was too broad and raised constitutional issues concerning due process because it denied opioid victims an opportunity to be heard.