Purdue Pharma after the Supreme Court blocked the old opioid deal

Purdue Pharma is a perfect example of a story that felt settled until it wasn't. The old bankruptcy plan would have given the Sackler family sweeping civil immunity in exchange for billions of dollars, but in June 2024 the Supreme Court rejected that structure. That was a huge disruption to one of the biggest civil resolutions in modern U.S. history.

The case then had to be rebuilt. In June 2025, Reuters reported that all 50 state attorneys general agreed to support a new $7.4 billion settlement, and by November 2025 a bankruptcy judge said he would approve the revised plan. In 2026, the settlement moved from approval toward implementation: AP reported that the new structure went into effect on May 1, with Purdue's operating assets shifting into a successor nonprofit and settlement funds expected to flow over time.

So the real follow-up is not just 'there was a settlement.' It's that the biggest opioid bankruptcy deal in America was blocked at the highest court, rebuilt in a new form, and only later moved into effect.