The Sacklers: Lawbreakers Or Master Manipulators?

The Sackler family, owners of Purdue Pharma, have been accused of fuelling the opioid crisis in the US. OxyContin, a prescription painkiller produced by Purdue, is stronger than morphine and has been blamed for the addiction and death of hundreds of thousands of Americans. While Purdue has admitted criminal wrongdoing and paid fines, no individual Sacklers have been charged with any crimes. However, the family has faced intense scrutiny and public outrage, with some calling for them to be held accountable and jailed. The US Supreme Court has rejected a bankruptcy deal that would have shielded the Sacklers from future lawsuits, but the family has avoided admitting any personal culpability.

The Sacklers' role in the opioid crisis

The Sackler family, owners of Purdue Pharma, has been widely criticized for their role in the opioid crisis. OxyContin, the powerful prescription painkiller manufactured and promoted by Purdue Pharma, is often blamed for driving the opioid crisis. Purdue Pharma was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and triggered the first wave of deaths linked to the use of legal prescription opioids.

The Sacklers have been accused of orchestrating and knowingly pushing deceptive practices to boost sales of OxyContin while misleading prescribers and the public about the risks of addiction and death. Court documents revealed that Dr. Richard Sackler encouraged atrocious marketing techniques, including blaming addiction victims and concealing information on the strength of the drug. Purdue Pharma also made payments to doctors and an electronic health records company, Practice Fusion Inc., to induce more prescriptions of their opioid products.

In 2020, Purdue Pharma pleaded guilty in federal court to three criminal charges, including defrauding health agencies and making illegal payments to doctors. The company also pleaded guilty in a 2007 criminal case, admitting to misbranding OxyContin as safe. However, they escaped heavy consequences and continued to increase sales of the drug.

In 2024, the Supreme Court rejected a bankruptcy deal for Purdue Pharma that would have shielded members of the Sackler family from future lawsuits over their role in the opioid crisis. The Sacklers had agreed to pay $6 billion towards a wider settlement in exchange for protection from civil claims. However, the Supreme Court ruled that granting such protections to the Sacklers, who did not declare bankruptcy themselves, was not authorized under the law.

While no individual Sacklers have been charged with crimes, six family members, including Kathe and David Sackler, have been sued by cities, counties, and states across the US. During a congressional hearing in 2020, Kathe and David Sackler refused to apologize for their role in the opioid crisis, despite expressing sadness and regret about the impact of addiction and overdoses.

The US Supreme Court's ruling on the Sacklers' bankruptcy deal

On 27 June 2024, the US Supreme Court rejected a bankruptcy deal involving Purdue Pharma, the maker of the highly addictive painkiller OxyContin, and members of the Sackler family who owned the company. The 5-4 ruling stated that US bankruptcy law does not give bankruptcy courts the power to block lawsuits against parties who have not filed for bankruptcy.

The bankruptcy settlement, valued at between $6 billion and $10 billion, would have seen the Sackler family pay $6 billion into the compensation pot in exchange for protection from personal liability. Six Sackler family members served on the company's board, including Chairman Richard Sackler, who directed the firm's aggressive and deceptive marketing strategy for OxyContin as a non-addictive painkiller.

Writing for the court majority, Justice Neil Gorsuch said:

> The bankruptcy code does not authorize a release and injunction that, as part of a plan of reorganization under Chapter 11, effectively seek to discharge claims against a non-debtor without the consent of affected claimants.

Gorsuch added that if Congress had intended to grant this level of power to bankruptcy courts, it would have done so explicitly.

The ruling in Harrington v Purdue Pharma blocks a deal approved by a federal bankruptcy court in New York that was first knocked down by a district court, then upheld on appeal before being put on hold while the US Department of Justice challenged it at the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court's decision highlights the need for congressional action to clarify how complicated lawsuits involving large numbers of victims should be resolved. However, it is unlikely that polarized lawmakers will take action, especially in an election year.

The Sackler family has stated that they will continue to push for a settlement, warning that the alternative is "costly and chaotic legal proceedings in courtrooms across the country".

The Sacklers' refusal to apologise

The Sackler family has been described as "the most evil family in America" and "the worst drug dealers in history". They owned the pharmaceutical company Purdue Pharma, which manufactured the prescription painkiller OxyContin. Purdue Pharma has been criticised for its role in the opioid epidemic in the United States, which has killed almost 500,000 Americans since 1999.

In 2020, two members of the Sackler family, Kathe and David Sackler, refused to apologise for their role in the opioid crisis during a hearing in Washington. They both expressed sadness about the opioid crisis and said they were sorry for the pain endured by individuals suffering from addiction and those who lost loved ones to overdoses. However, they avoided admitting any personal culpability.

David Sackler, who sat on the board of Purdue from 2012 to 2018, said he relied on Purdue's management to keep up with medical science and ensure the company was complying with laws and regulations. He concluded: "We are truly sorry to everyone who has lost a family member or suffered from the scourge of addiction."

Kathe Sackler, a former vice-president of Purdue Pharma who sat on the board of directors from 1990 to 2018, said she "acted honestly and in good faith". She said:

> It distresses me greatly and angers me greatly that the medication that was developed to help people and relieve severe pain has become associated with so much human suffering. I would be happy to apologize to the American people for all the pain, suffering and tragedies while adding that she was angry that some people at Purdue broke the law.

When pressed again by committee chair and New York Democrat Carolyn Maloney, Kathe Sackler responded that when she looked back at her time at Purdue, "there is nothing I could have done differently".

David Sackler was asked the same question and responded:

> To the American people, I am deeply and profoundly sorry that OxyContin has played a role in any addiction and death... I believe I conducted myself legally and ethically.

In 2021, Purdue Pharma filed for bankruptcy and was dissolved. The Sacklers agreed to pay $4.5 billion over nine years, with most of the money funding addiction treatment. However, the bankruptcy judge acknowledged that the Sacklers had moved money to offshore accounts to protect it from claims and wished the settlement had been higher.

The Sacklers' immunity from opioid lawsuits

The Sackler family, owners of Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, sought broad immunity from opioid lawsuits for themselves and a long list of associates, including financial advisors, public relations firms, law firms, lobbyists, drugmakers, and laboratories. This demand emerged as a flashpoint in the federal bankruptcy trial, with critics pointing out that none of the listed individuals and entities had filed for bankruptcy protection themselves.

The Sacklers argued that without this deal, there would be legal chaos as thousands of individual lawsuits moved forward against the company and the family. They indicated they would only make payments if they and their associates received "global peace" from liability. In May 2023, a New York court of appeals ruled in favour of the Sacklers, granting them immunity from current and future lawsuits in exchange for a $6 billion opioid settlement. This decision was hailed as a victory by Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family.

However, the US Supreme Court later struck down a part of the bankruptcy deal that would have shielded the Sacklers from future lawsuits over their role in fuelling the opioid crisis. The Supreme Court ruled that granting such protections to the Sacklers, who did not declare bankruptcy themselves, was not authorized under the law. This ruling opened the door for potential lawsuits against the Sackler family and their associates related to their role in the opioid crisis.

The Sacklers' wealth and philanthropy

The Sackler family is one of the richest families in the US, with an estimated $13 billion fortune that came primarily from sales of the controversial prescription painkiller OxyContin. OxyContin is seen as partly to blame for the opioid crisis sweeping the US. The family is known for its philanthropic endeavours, though many institutions, including museums and universities, have now cut ties with the Sacklers.

The Sacklers are worth an estimated $13 billion, according to Forbes. The bulk of that fortune derives from the family’s privately-owned pharmaceutical company, Purdue Pharma. The Connecticut-based firm invented and energetically marketed one of the most controversial opioids of the 21st century – OxyContin. The prescription painkiller brand has been vastly over-prescribed and abused, leading to millions of addicts, rising overdose deaths, a federal criminal case and a “tidal wave” of lawsuits.

The Sacklers are far from a harmonious clan. Their distinctive name is displayed at Harvard, the Smithsonian and the Metropolitan Museum, and behind research facilities and professorships at MIT, Columbia, Cornell, Stanford and others in the US. Sackler is also inscribed on British cultural altars such as the Serpentine Sackler Gallery, the new forecourt at the Victoria & Albert Museum, a bridge at Kew Gardens, the Tate, the National Gallery, the Royal Opera House and behind research centres at several UK universities.

The Sacklers have donated to cultural institutions, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the American Museum of Natural History, and the Guggenheim. The family has also donated to universities, including Harvard University, Yale University, Cornell University, and the University of Oxford, although the latter severed ties in 2023. The Sackler Faculty of Medicine at Tel Aviv University was named after Arthur, Mortimer, and Raymond Sackler for their donations but the name was removed in June 2023. Similarly, the Sackler Institute of Pulmonary Pharmacology at King's College London was named after Mortimer and Theresa Sackler.

The Sacklers are also the owners of Mundipharma, a lower-profile pharma company that has significant operations in China.

The family's philanthropy has been characterized as reputation laundering from profits acquired from the selling of opiates.

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