File this one under "So Weird It's Gotta Be True": Rudy Guiliani was the "lead counsel" to Purdue in the OxyContin settlement. That's right. That Rudy Guiliani, who's now running for president.
The NYT points out that the feds' fine for the false marketing case consumed 90% of Purdue's profits.
A few weeks ago I bemoaned the fact that Big Pharma had essentially outmaneuvered the law by engaging in so much M&A activity that companies' sheer size made government fines negligible. This appears to be one case where that didn't happen.
These are the questions that emerge:
1. Does this fact hurt Rudy's presidential ambitions? (Guiliani -- Friend of Hillbilly Heroin in 08!)
2. How exactly did Rudy "counsel" Purdue -- in addition to the massive fines, three execs were convicted. With a defense like that,who needs prosecutors?
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