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The settlement between Johnson & Johnson and Cuyahoga and Summit counties may not have much bearing on what happens with the thousands of other lawsuits the drugmaker faces, according to Case Western Reserve University law professor Andrew Pollis.
On Tuesday, Johnson & Johnson announced the $20 million settlement, which requires approval by the judge in the case.
According to , half of the money will go to the two counties, $5 million to lawyers and another $5.4 million to 鈥渙pioid-related programs in these two counties.鈥�
CWRU鈥檚 Pollis says he was surprised by Johnson & Johnson鈥檚 settlement agreement.
鈥淭hey were such a steadfast champion of their own believed defense in Oklahoma for example,鈥� said Pollis, referring to state court.
鈥淭hey still vowed to appeal, and they adopted the mantra, 鈥榃hen you鈥檙e right, fight,鈥欌�� Pollis said.
The case brought by Cuyahoga and Summit counties against Johnson & Johnson and other drugmakers is scheduled for trial Oct. 21. The claims from the two Northeast Ohio governments are the first to go to trial among the more than 2,000 that are part of the Multi-District Litigation (MDL) in front of a federal judge in Cleveland.
Pollis argues this settlement, and others struck with Cuyahoga and Summit counties, doesn鈥檛 offer much guidance for how much money is at stake in the larger lawsuit.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e dealing here with two major metropolitan areas,鈥� Pollis said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very difficult to read from one case to the next.鈥�
Johnson & Johnson did not admit to any wrongdoing as part of the agreement.
Pollis adds that the whole process could still be derailed in federal court. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost is challenging the right of the municipalities to seek payments from the drug companies. The federal judge overseeing the MDL, Dan Polster, recently denied a request from the drug companies to recuse himself.
鈥淚 guess what I鈥檓 saying is there鈥檚 so much uncertainty around this litigation, around the potential for liability, around who has standing to sue and so forth, so much uncertainty,鈥� Pollis said. 鈥淚t really is difficult to look at these settlements as anything other than isolated and random data points.鈥�
