Supreme Court rejects controversial Purdue Pharma bankruptcy deal

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday invalidated a controversial bankruptcy deal involving Purdue Pharma, maker of the highly addictive painkiller Oxycontin, and members of the Sackler family who owned the scandal-plagued drug firm.

By a vote of 5 to 4 the justices threw out the bankruptcy settlement, which has been valued at between $6 and $10 billion.

Writing for the court majority, Justice Neil Gorsuch said that U.S. bankruptcy law doesn't afford bankruptcy courts the kind of power needed to block lawsuits against parties who haven't filed for bankruptcy.