SOUTH HADLEY — The Select Board will consider joining a nationwide lawsuit aimed at major pharmaceutical manufacturers at Tuesday night’s meeting.
“This is actually coming before us for the first time,” Chairman John Hine said. “It’s an interesting concept.”
A contract to be presented to the Select Board from the Massachusetts Opioid Litigation Attorneys names three Massachusetts firms coordinating the lawsuits: Sweeney Merrigan Law, Rodman, Rodman and Sandman and Kopelman and Paige. They are reaching out to municipalities across the state to take part in a “mass tort litigation.”
If officials move ahead, South Hadley would join Greenfield, Easthampton and 30 other municipalities across the state that have signed on to the lawsuit.
“The litigation focuses on the wholesale distributors and manufacturers of opioids and their role in the diversion of millions of prescription opiates into the illicit market which has resulted in opioid addiction, abuse, morbidity and mortality,” the contract states. “There is no easy solution and no precedent for such an action against this sector of the industry.”
Damages awarded from the lawsuit are meant to cover a city or town’s expenses for things like emergency services, the opioid-overdose antidote known as naloxone, addiction treatment, law enforcement and other costs related to opioid addiction.
Cities and towns can join the lawsuit at no cost, with the law firms collecting 25 percent of the settlement if the case is won.
“As they say on TV, they don’t get anything unless they win,” Hine said.
Peter Merrigan of Sweeney Merrigan Law said the firm is one of three in Massachusetts and nine nationally that are coordinating the lawsuits.
“It’s called a crisis for a reason and it’s going to require a multifaceted approach to combat it,” Merrigan said. “Everybody seems to know somebody who has suffered. It’s attacking our small communities, our backyard communities.”
The mass tort litigation, filed on behalf of Massachusetts taxpayers, is not a class action lawsuit, but rather a collection of lawsuits filed on behalf of individual municipalities claiming different, but related damages. The pretrial and defendant discovery process will be consolidated through a law office in Cleveland, Merrigan said, to be used by lawsuits around the country.
“Just because it’s sold commercially and comes in a bottle sold to us doesn’t mean it’s no more dangerous than a street drug,” Merrigan said.
Hine said before joining the lawsuit the town would look into how the opioid epidemic has impacted South Hadley, addiction services and law enforcement expenses. He said they would consult with the Board of Health, law enforcement and school officials to collect information.
“I think we need to talk about what does this mean, what has the addiction crisis meant to South Hadley and how has it manifested itself to get an idea of what we need to address if we get some damages,” Hine said. “I think we would need to bring a lot of segments of the community together to talk about that.”
In addition to Greenfield, the first community in the state to file such a lawsuit, the group of attorneys represents Easthampton and about 30 other municipalities, with an additional 30 having made verbal commitments, Merrigan said.
Also Tuesday, the Select Board will finalize the wording of a request for proposal prepared by the town’s recently hired consultant, Colliers International Golf Course Advisory.
“We’re looking for people with experience and history and people who can present a solid plan,” Hine said. “We’re not dictating much in terms of how it will be done. We’re looking for creative ways for people to run the course.”
Hine said that with the Ledges being a public entity purchased with a state grant, there are particular laws the regarding profits made.
“It’s complicated, but there are restrictions in terms of private entities being able to make money off the use of public lands,” Hine said. “We can’t sell it, and even leasing the course there are restrictions.”
Sarah Robertson can be reached at srobertson@gazettenet.com