Mark Lanier appeared on the podcast The News with Gene Valicenti to discuss the recent jury verdict he and his trial team secured against pharmacies operated by Walgreens, CVS, and Walmart for the role they played in the nation’s devastating opioid epidemic which has claimed thousands of lives and cost communities billions of dollars. Mark goes on to discuss the verdict’s wider implications around the country. You can listen to the interview below.
Author: The Lanier Law Firm
Historic Verdict Finds Walmart, CVS, Walgreens Pharmacies Responsible for Fueling Opioid Addiction Epidemic
Jurors in closely watched trial agreed pharmacies failed to follow guidelines that would have stopped spread of opioid painkillers in hard-hit communities
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Retail pharmacies operated by Walmart, CVS and Walgreens have been hit with a historic jury verdict finding that they failed to follow guidelines that would have curtailed the staggering distribution of highly addictive opioid painkillers.
The verdict sends an important message to pharmacies facing similar litigation in venues across the United States. For the first time, jurors agreed that blame for the epidemic of opioid addiction cannot be leveled solely on pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors that produced and supplied highly addictive painkillers. Following six weeks of testimony, jurors found that pharmacies at the end of the supply chain failed to follow procedures that would have raised flags about questionable prescriptions and the sheer volume of pills flooding communities.
Listen to Mr. Lanier discuss this case and its wider implications on “The News With Gene Valicenti“.
The epidemic has destroyed families and overwhelmed courts, health care systems and key social services, reportedly causing more than $1 billion in damages in Trumbull and Lake counties in northeast Ohio. Actual economic damages will be determined in the next phase of the trial.
The counties were represented by a legal team that included Mark Lanier, Rachel Lanier, Mildred Conroy, Alex Abston and Michelle Carreras of The Lanier Law Firm, Peter Weinberger of Spangenberg Shibley & Liber LLP, Frank Gallucci of Plevin & Gallucci Co., and Maria Fleming of Napoli Shkolnik PLLC.
“This jury heard the evidence, and their message is crystal clear,” said Mr. Lanier. “These pharmacies simply did not follow guidelines that would have raised red flags and curtailed the living nightmare that these communities have had to endure.”
In Trumbull County, approximately 80 million prescription opioid painkillers were dispensed, which is the equivalent of 400 pills for each resident. In Lake County, approximately 61 million pills were distributed. The resulting addiction crisis contributed to higher rates of heroin and fentanyl abuse and a steep increase in overdose deaths. Across the country, more than 500,000 overdose deaths have been blamed on opioid abuse in the last two decades.
The cases are County of Lake v. Purdue Pharma LP et al., case number 1:18-op-45032, County of Trumbull v. Purdue Pharma LP et al., case number 1:18-op-45079, and In re: National Prescription Opiate Litigation, case number 1:17-md-02804, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.
Contact:
J.D. Cargill
713-659-5200
[email protected]
The Lanier Law Firm Ranks Among the Nation’s Best
HOUSTON — The Lanier Law Firm has once again been named one of the best law firms in the nation in the prestigious annual Best Law Firms guide assembled by U.S. News and World Report and The Best Lawyers in America.
The firm is nationally ranked for the representation of plaintiffs in mass torts and class actions as well as appellate practice. In addition, the firm is recognized with a Tier 1 ranking in the Houston area for appellate practice, commercial litigation, and its work on behalf of plaintiffs in both personal injury and product liability litigation. The firm’s New York office is also recognized with a Tier 1 regional ranking for product liability litigation.
Researchers from U.S. News and Best Lawyers evaluate thousands of responses from law firm clients to develop the annual guide.
The Lanier Law Firm is known for standing up for people who are hurt by dangerous products and reckless acts. The firm is also known for representing corporations in cases involving breach of contract, oil and gas litigation, employment disputes, antitrust, fraud, and other causes of action.
Further, The Lanier Law Firm and its founder, Mark Lanier, are widely recognized for the harnessing of innovative technology to communicate more effectively to a jury.
Industry experts are also noticing the sound legal representation provided by The Lanier Law Firm. This year, 18 attorneys from the firm were recognized in the 2022 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. It was the largest number of attorneys from the firm ever selected by editors of the prestigious legal publication.
About the Lanier Law Firm
For more than 30 years, the men and women at The Lanier Law Firm have worked tirelessly, throughout the United States, to find unique and effective solutions for their clients. More than 60 skilled attorneys practice law in a broad array of areas, including business litigation, pharmaceutical litigation, asbestos exposure, oil and gas litigation, personal injury as well as defective and dangerous products, among others. Named an Elite Trial Law Firm by The National Law Journal, The Lanier Law Firm has offices in Houston, New York and Los Angeles.
Contact:
J.D. Cargill
713-659-5200
[email protected]
Mark Lanier Again Named Among Nation’s Top 100 Trial Lawyers
Mark Lanier, founder of The Lanier Law Firm, has been recognized as one of the “Top 100 Trial Lawyers in America” in the 2022 Benchmark Litigation guide to the nation’s finest litigators. Editors at the publication used attorney surveys, client-based research and a review of recent casework in developing the list.
This marks the sixth consecutive year that Mr. Lanier has been honored by the publication for his commercial litigation practice as well as his success in the area of toxic tort litigation.
Cumulatively, Mr. Lanier has garnered nearly $20 billion in verdicts during his highly acclaimed career. In 2018, he led a trial team that won a record $4.69 billion verdict from Johnson & Johnson, with jurors finding the company failed to warn consumers for decades that cancer-causing asbestos had been detected in the company’s talc-based baby powders.
That verdict followed the firm’s success in three federal jury trials in which a total of nearly $2 billion was awarded against J&J and its Pinnacle division based on claims from multiple people who suffered serious medical complications caused by the company’s defective hip implant devices.
The prestigious Benchmark selection is just the latest honor for Mr. Lanier.Earlier this year he was again named to the top tier of trial lawyers in the nation by the elite Chambers USA legal directory, and for the 12th consecutive year was named among the nation’s top 500 attorneys by Lawdragon.
In addition,Mr. Lanier has been named as one of the Most Influential Attorneys of the Decade by the National Law Journal; as one of the 25 Greatest Lawyers of the Past Quarter Century by Texas Lawyer; and is a recipient of the American Association of Justice’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Lanier Law Firm’s Appellate Practice Honored by National Law Journal
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Lanier Law Firm was among 24 national firms honored for excellence in appellate work during the past year at the National Law Journal’s Legal Awards event in Washington, D.C. The annual awards highlight the top litigation and appellate practices in specific areas, as well as individual attorneys. Continue reading “Lanier Law Firm’s Appellate Practice Honored by National Law Journal”