According to the Complaint, Reckitt Benckiser Group plc is a consumer goods and health conglomerate.
The Complaint alleges that before and during the Class Period, Reckitt and its most senior executives perpetrated a scheme, which generated over $3 billion in proceeds, to facilitate opiate abuse among U.S. consumers and mislead investors and the public regarding the health and safety risks of Reckitt’s new key opiate product, Suboxone Film. Specifically, the Complaint alleges that in order to maintain and grow profits, senior executives at Reckitt devised a plan to switch prescribers from Suboxone Tablets to the Company’s new proprietary treatment, Suboxone Film and that as a result of Defendants’ false and misleading statements and/or omissions regarding the scheme to inflate sales of Suboxone Film during the Class Period, Reckitt ADSs traded at artificially inflated prices.
On September 26, 2019, the Court issued an Order appointing Lead Plaintiff and Counsel. Lead Plaintiff filed an amended Complaint on January 16, 2020. On November 30, the Court issued an Order transferring the case to the Southern District of New York. On January 11, 2021, Lead Plaintiff filed a second amended Complaint. On March 26, Lead Plaintiff filed a third amended Complaint. Defendants filed Motions to Dismiss the third amended Complaint on June 25. On February 28, 2022, the Court issued an Order granting in part and denying in part Defendants' Motions to Dismiss. All claims against two of the individual Defendants were dismissed.
Lead Plaintiff filed a Motion for Class Certification on October 28, 2022. On January 1, 2023, the Court denied the Motion for Class Certification in view of the anticipated motion for preliminary approval of a Settlement.
On March 10, 2023, the parties entered into a Stipulation of Settlement. The Court granted preliminary approval of the Settlement on March 16. On July 19, the Court granted final approval of the Settlement, including an award of Attorneys’ Fees and Expenses, and entered Final Judgment.
