Publication Archive: Ohio Opioid Lawyers

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Dan Aaron Polster clears the way for testimony at a bellwether trial by Russell Portenoy. “The court concludes Dr. Portenoy’s testimony is too important to the [bellwether] trial, and that exclusion of his testimony is too extreme a sanction under these circumstances,” Judge Polster wrote in rejecting sanctions that…Read the article

Plaintiffs’ lawyer Hunter Shkolnik of Napoli Shkolnik, who represents bellwether plaintiff Cuyahoga County, told me the expert witness reports were supposed to remain confidential. “I really don’t see a rational, calculated benefit for defendants from disclosing those numbers,” he said. Shkolnik, who declined to confirm his experts’ damages estimates, said the defense goal appears to be to delay…Read the article

The Portland, Bangor and Lewiston lawsuits, along with many others, will now be influenced by three “bellwether cases” set to be tried in the Northern District of Ohio next year, said Paul Napoli, a New York-based lawyer for the Maine cities, as well as many others. Settlements in those cases, brought by the city of…Read the article

In a motion to dismiss, drugmakers accused Ohio cities and counties of disregarding an April case management order requiring the disclosure of prescriptions that the governments believe were medically unnecessary or medically inappropriate. Hunter Shkolnik of Napoli Shkolnik PLLC, a top attorney for the local governments, fired back on Friday, calling the motion “a ridiculous…Read the article

A special master appointed to oversee a discovery dispute in multidistrict litigation over the opioid crisis partially granted a request by counties for more information from a McKesson Corp. investigation into suspicious drug order oversight, finding the counties are entitled to witness names but that statements and terms used in the investigation are protected work…Read the article

The drugmakers are taking issue with requirements to produce certain data stretching back to 1996, records related to any schedule II opioids and documents produced previously in any litigation involving the marketing or distribution of opioids. Hunter Shkolnik of Napoli Shkolnik PLLC, a top plaintiffs attorney in the MDL, told Law360 that the (defense) parties…Read the article

The city of Strongsville is following the example of the state of Ohio and other communities in suing the manufacturers and distributors of prescription painkillers. Like other lawsuits filed against the prescription pain killer drug makers, Strongsville’s lawsuit will now seek a specific monetary compensation, leaving the sought after total unspecified. It says the compensation…Read the article

Under a proposed ordinance, which City Council placed on first reading last week, the city would hire Climaco, Wilcox, Peca & Garofoli Co. LPA, a Cleveland law firm, and Napoli Shkolnik PLLC in New York City to represent Strongsville in the legal action. If council approves the ordinance, Strongsville would follow in the footsteps of…Read the article

Hunter Shkolnik of Napoli Shkolnik PLLC, a member of the plaintiffs’ executive committee, said Judge Polster also appeared to be moved by a speaker — Armond Budish, the executive of Cuyahoga County, Ohio — who urged a reduction in opioid sales and more funding for addiction treatment. “I think the judge took these types of…Read the article

The lawsuit was filed in Lorain County Common Pleas Court on Wednesday by attorneys representing the county two weeks after the county commissioners announced they had hired Napoli Shkolnik, a law firm based in New York, as outside counsel on the matter.Read the article