A critical mass of 36 state attorneys general have responded to the opioid crisis with investigations and litigation targeting manufacturers and distributors. But hundreds of private lawyers have also filed a barrage of opioid-related lawsuits on behalf of local governments, making it much harder for the state-led effort to convince the industry to agree to a comprehensive settlement. To resolve this logjam, attorneys general should structure state-centric deals under which localities can benefit if they drop their lawsuits.

Source: Wall Street Journal March 03, 2019 21:44 UTC