Seeking $8 billion, the plaintiffs claim the distributors conspired to flout the federal law that requires them to monitor sales and report outliers. Their defense may include a recent report from a federal watchdog that accuses the Drug Enforcement Administration of lax oversight of opioids. In the courtroomFor the plaintiffs: Mark Lanier, long recognized as one of the country’s best tort trial lawyers. With his native Texas drawl, the boyish energy of a man who built and runs a train on his 40-acre estate, and a preacher’s conviction, Mr. Lanier has exacted giant-killer jury verdicts from Johnson & Johnson and Merck. On Sunday, Mr. Lanier turned 59 and, as he usually does when working out of town, flew back to Houston on his private plane to deliver his Sunday Bible study lecture, typically attended by hundreds.

Source: New York Times October 20, 2019 20:37 UTC