A creditor group claiming bankrupt drugmaker Mallinckrodt PLC took actions that resulted in price-gouging lost its bid to have an examiner appointed to investigate certain chapter 11 claims and votes related to asbestos exposure, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Judge John Dorsey of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., at a hearing on Monday declined to appoint an examiner to look into ballots cast on Mallinckrodt’s plan to exit chapter 11 bankruptcy on behalf of thousands of asbestos-injury victims represented by personal injury lawyer Thomas Bevan and other law firms. Mallinckrodt turned to bankruptcy in 2020 to resolve a rising number of lawsuits over the sale of opioid products along with antitrust claims over pricing for its H.P. Acthar Gel drug, used to treat infantile spasms, multiple sclerosis and other conditions. Dublin-based Mallinckrodt also faced more than 11,700 asbestos-related lawsuits, mostly related to legacy operations of predecessor companies. Judge Dorsey ruled against a request made last month by employers and others alleging they overpaid for Acthar treatments. The city of Rockford, Ill., for example, has alleged that beginning in 2007 Mallinckrodt entered into several contracts designed to limit distribution of Acthar and raise its prices more than 1,300%.
