DUBLIN, June 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Endo International
plc (NASDAQ: ENDP) today announced that the Tennessee Court of Appeals recently issued
several orders with respect to a default judgment order on
liability entered by the Circuit Court for Sullivan County, Tennessee in April 2021 against its wholly-owned subsidiaries
Endo Health Solutions Inc. and Endo Pharmaceuticals
Inc. (collectively, "Endo") in Case No. C-41916,
originally captioned as Staubus, et al. v. Purdue Pharma,
L.P., et al.
Specifically, on June 8, 2021, the
Tennessee Court of Appeals
declined to review the default judgment order on a discretionary
basis on the ground that a contempt judgment becomes final upon the
entry of punishment and is immediately appealable as of
right. Today, the Tennessee
Court of Appeals denied without prejudice the plaintiffs' motion to
dismiss Endo's separate appeal as of right from the default
judgment order and directed Endo to show cause as to why its appeal
should not be dismissed on the procedural ground that portions of
the default judgment order were not final. The Tennessee
Court of Appeals also denied without prejudice Endo's motion to
stay further proceedings in the trial court on the procedural
ground that Endo must first seek a stay from the trial court.
Matthew J. Maletta, Endo's
Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, commented: "As we
previously stated, Endo believes the trial court's default judgment
order was procedurally, factually and legally deficient. We
therefore promptly appealed that order to the Tennessee Court of Appeals. The orders
issued today by the Tennessee
Court of Appeals do not dispose of Endo's appeal as of right.
We will promptly take the actions directed by the Tennessee Court of Appeals and Endo will
continue to seek a stay of further trial court proceedings
including, if necessary, in the appellate courts."
The Company also intends to seek review by the Tennessee Supreme
Court of the trial court's order permitting the substitution of new
plaintiffs in the case after the Tennessee Court of Appeals denied Endo's
application for discretionary review of that order on June 8, 2021.
As originally filed, the Staubus case involved
allegations by three Tennessee District Attorneys General
and an individual plaintiff that Endo's sale of prescription opioid
medications violated Tennessee's Drug Dealer Liability
Act (the "DDLA"). In December 2020, the Tennessee
Supreme Court unanimously ruled
that Tennessee's District Attorneys General lack standing
to bring claims under the DDLA. On April 5, 2021,
the trial court permitted several Tennessee towns,
cities and counties to substitute into the case in place of the
District Attorney General plaintiffs. The next day,
on April 6, 2021, the trial court entered a default
judgment order against Endo on liability as a sanction for alleged
discovery improprieties. That order did not award any damages
to the plaintiffs. The trial court has scheduled a trial
on damages to begin on July 26,
2021.
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 statements in this press release are 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 by Mr. Maletta and statements relating to the status
and/or 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.
Logo -
https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/530208/Endo_International_plc_Logo.jpg