Addiction and overdoses of the synthetic painkillers have killed more than 10,000 Oklahoma residents since 2000, lawyers argued, asking for a record $17 billion in damages.
“The opioid crisis has ravaged the state of Oklahoma. It must be abated immediately,” Judge Thad Balkman said before announcing his verdict.
Johnson & Johnson is the first company to be put on trial for what the state said was a “cynical, deceitful multibillion-dollar brainwashing campaign.” The state said J&J marketed opioids as a “magic drug” to doctors, caregivers and other prescribers.
Attorneys cited Oklahoma’s “public nuisance” law, which is intended to protect the public from people and companies looking to harm others.
J&J’s lawyers argued the company’s claims about its painkillers are backed by science. They pointed out that J&J’s products make up a tiny fraction of opioids prescribed in Oklahoma and less than 1% of all those used across the country.
Appeal planned
J&J said it will appeal the ruling. The company said Oklahoma’s state attorneys used a “radical” interpretation of the public nuisance law.
Johnson & Johnson was one of three pharmaceutical houses sued by Oklahoma, but the only one to come to trial.
The state made multimillion-dollar settlements with Perdue Pharma and Israeli-owned Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries earlier this year.
The Trump administration has declared opioid addiction a national health crisis.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, opioids have killed nearly 400,000 people over the last 20 years.