City to sue drug companies for opioid crisis

SARASOTA — The Sarasota City Commission voted unanimously to move forward with a lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies, hoping to recover damages associated with the opioid epidemic.

According to a YourObserver.com article, attorneys with Sarasota-based law firm Kirk Pinkerton and Jacksonville-based Abbot Law Group approached the city with the prospect of filing suit as part of a broader effort statewide to take action against drug manufacturers.

The legal team intends to file a suit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida in Tampa. In a release, the attorneys say they would file suit against as many as seven major pharmaceutical manufacturing companies.

“Their conduct is fraudulent, unlawful and deceptive and municipalities have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to keep up with expenses related to this malfeasance,” says Kirk Pinkerton CEO and attorney Bill Robertson in a statement.

Robertson and others connected with the case say the city won't be responsible for any expenses related to the suit unless the legal team successfully recovers damages.