New York judge sets opioid crisis trial for January

CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (AP) — A New York judge has scheduled what could be the second state-level trial in the U.S. on the toll of opioids.

Judge Jerry Garguilo on Wednesday set a trial date of Jan. 20 for claims brought by the state attorney general and the Long Island counties of Nassau and Suffolk against a group of drug manufacturers and distributors.

He is not hearing claims against OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma or members of the Sackler family who own it. They are attempting to settle some 2,700 claims against the company through federal bankruptcy court.

Other companies have also been trying to reach a settlement of more than 2,000 cases across the U.S.

An Oklahoma judge this year ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $572 million in the nation’s first opioid liability trial.

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This story has been updated to correct the timing of the Oklahoma judge’s order to this year, instead of last year.