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Jury Chosen For Opioid Crisis Trial
By: Associated Press
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CLEVELAND (AP) – A jury has been chosen for the first federal trial on the opioid crisis even as the push for a settlement intensifies with drug executives heading to Cleveland for further talks.
A person with knowledge of the negotiations said Thursday that Judge Dan Polster had ordered executives for the companies that are defendants to appear in Cleveland on Friday for continued negotiations.
The person was not authorized to disclose information about ongoing negotiations and spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Opening arguments are scheduled for Monday.
Three major drug distributors and two drug manufacturers have the outlines of a settlement to thousands of opioid-related lawsuits that could be worth $50 billion over time.
Most of those companies are defendants in the Cleveland trial on claims from Ohio’s Cuyahoga and Summit counties.
Jury selection was completed Thursday.