DUBLIN, April 7, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Endo
International plc (NASDAQ: ENDP) today announced the entry of
an order granting a default judgment on liability against its
wholly-owned subsidiaries Endo Health Solutions Inc. (EHSI)
and Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. (EPI) in Staubus, et al. v. Purdue
Pharma, L.P., et al., Case No. C-41916, which has been pending
in the Circuit Court for Sullivan
County at Kingsport,
Tennessee since 2017.
The Staubus case involves allegations by three
Tennessee District Attorneys
General and an individual plaintiff that EHSI's and EPI's sale of
prescription opioid medications violated Tennessee's Drug Dealer Liability Act
(DDLA). In December 2020, the
Tennessee Supreme Court unanimously ruled that Tennessee's District Attorneys General do not
have standing to bring claims under the DDLA. On April 5, 2021, the Staubus court permitted
several Tennessee counties to
substitute into the case in place of the District Attorney General
plaintiffs. The next day, on April 6,
2021, the Staubus court entered a default judgment
against Endo on liability as a sanction for alleged discovery
improprieties. The order does not address the issue of
damages, which the Staubus court ordered to be tried at a
future date.
Endo takes its discovery obligations seriously and has made
extraordinary efforts to address the Staubus court's
concerns, including by hiring an additional law firm, producing
hundreds of thousands of additional documents and offering
additional depositions at Endo's expense. Endo strongly
disagrees with the Staubus court's orders, which it believes
are procedurally, factually, and legally deficient. The
Company will seek review of the Staubus court's orders by
the Tennessee appellate
courts.
About Endo International plc
Endo (NASDAQ: ENDP) is a specialty pharmaceutical company
committed to helping everyone we serve live their best life through
the delivery of quality, life-enhancing therapies. Our decades of
proven success come from a global team of passionate employees
collaborating to bring the best treatments forward. Together, we
boldly transform insights into treatments benefiting those who need
them, when they need them. Learn more at www.endo.com or
connect with us on LinkedIn.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain information in this press release may be considered
"forward-looking statements," within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and any applicable
Canadian securities legislation including, but not limited to, the
statements relating to the status and outcome of litigation.
All forward-looking statements in this press release
reflect Endo's current expectations of future events
based on information available to Endo as of the date of
this press release. If underlying assumptions prove
inaccurate or unknown risks or uncertainties materialize, actual
results could vary materially from Endo's expectations
and projections, including with respect to the impact of the
Staubus case or any other litigation, investigation or
settlement proceeding on our financial statements, including our
cash flows from operations; our ability to adjust to changing
market conditions; our ability to attract and retain key personnel;
our ability to maintain compliance with our financial obligations
under certain of our outstanding debt obligations, causing a
downgrade of our debt and long-term corporate ratings (which could
increase our cost of capital) and exposing us to potential events
of default (if not cured or waived) under financial and operating
covenants contained in our or our subsidiaries' outstanding
indebtedness; our ability to incur additional borrowings under the
covenants in our then-existing facilities or to obtain additional
debt or equity financing for working capital, capital expenditures,
business development, debt service requirements, acquisitions or
general corporate or other purposes, or to refinance our
indebtedness; and/or a significant reduction in our short-term and
long-term revenues and/or otherwise cause us to be unable to fund
our operations and liquidity needs, such as future capital
expenditures and payment of our indebtedness. The occurrence
or possibility of any such result may cause us to engage in a
strategic review that ultimately results in our pursuing one or
more significant corporate transactions or remedial measures.
Other risks and uncertainties include general industry and market
conditions; technological advances and patents attained by
competitors; challenges inherent in the research and development
and regulatory processes, including regulatory decisions, product
recalls, withdrawals and other unusual items; challenges related to
product marketing, such as the unpredictability of market
acceptance for new products and/or the acceptance of new
indications for such products; inconsistency of treatment results
among patients; potential difficulties in manufacturing; general
economic conditions; and governmental laws and regulations
affecting domestic and foreign operations. Endo expressly
disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking
statements except as required by law. Additional information
concerning these and other risk factors can be found
in Endo's periodic reports filed with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission and in Canada on
the System for Electronic Data Analysis and Retrieval, including
current reports on Form 8-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and
annual reports on Form 10-K.