Baltimore — The Maryland Supreme Court on Friday wiped out Baltimore’s $153 million opioid verdict, sending the case back to a lower court and dealing a major blow to the city’s efforts to hold drug distributors liable under public nuisance law.
In a brief order, Chief Justice Matthew Fader said the court was acting in light of its recent ruling in Express Scripts, Inc. v. Anne Arundel County, which sharply limits how public nuisance claims can be used in opioid litigation. The justices granted review, vacated the Baltimore City Circuit Court judgment and remanded the case for further proceedings consistent with that decision.
The move effectively erases the jury’s finding that distributors McKesson and Cencora were liable for contributing to Baltimore’s opioid crisis.
Retired federal judge Andre Davis said the order leaves little room for the city to recover damages from the companies that went to trial.
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