Columbus, OH – On Monday, The Buckeye Institute filed an amicus brief with the Ohio Supreme Court in Trumbull County v. Purdue Pharma (National Prescription Opiate Litigation), arguing that awarding the government monetary damages as punishment for a public nuisance is not allowed under Ohio law.

“The opioid epidemic is a tragedy that has destroyed and damaged lives across Ohio and the country. And it is appropriate, even necessary, for the courts to hold those who committed illegal acts accountable,” said Jay R. Carson, senior litigator at The Buckeye Institute. “However, governments suing pharmacies for filling lawful doctors’ prescriptions is not the solution, and awarding monetary damages to the government as a punishment for a ‘public nuisance’ is not allowed under Ohio law.” 

Trumbull County v. Purdue Pharma was appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit after a lower court awarded millions in monetary damages based on a jury’s ruling that “‘oversupply of legal prescription opioids, and diversion of those opioids into the illicit market outside of appropriate medical channels’ was a public nuisance.” The Sixth Circuit asked the Ohio Supreme Court if—under the Ohio Product Liability Act—monetary damages can be awarded to address a “public nuisance.”

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