ABOUT THE CASE

The Joseph Saveri Law Firm, LLP served as Liaison Counsel for Lidoderm end-payors in a class action lawsuit against Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc., Teikoku Seiyaku Co., Inc., and Actavis Inc., along with their respective subsidiaries, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

The suit charged Endo, Teikoku, and Actavis with entering into an illegal reverse pay agreement, forcing companies and consumers to pay higher prices for Lidoderm: a patch containing lidocaine, which is typically used to treat post-shingles pain. Endo and Teikoku allegedly provided $96 million worth of branded Lidoderm to Actavis to keep generic lidocaine patches off the market for a year, while promising not to launch its own authorized generic competitor for seven and a half months.

Companies and consumers claimed Endo, Teikoku, and Actavis engaged in an anticompetitive scheme to prevent generic price competition and raise the price of Lidoderm.

“This unlawful agreement had a far-reaching impact on consumers, companies, and other entities who purchase Lidoderm,” said Joseph Saveri, liaison counsel for the end-payor class. “By eliminating generic alternatives, these companies unfairly increased their profits while forcing patients and other payors to accept inflated prices or suffer without medication.”

The suit, In re Lidoderm Antitrust Litigation, sought monetary damages for Lidoderm end-payors. In 2017, the Court granted plaintiffs’ motion for class certification.