Fourth Circuit Revives Problematic Public Nuisance Claim

Litigation attorney Eric Alexander published a blog for Drug & Device Law analyzing the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit's decision in City of Huntington v. AmerisourceBergen Drug Corp., which reversed a district court bench trial win for opioid distributors by broadening West Virginia public nuisance law. He examines the court's Erie approach, under which federal courts sitting in diversity should refrain from creating new state law causes of action or remedies absent guidance from the state's highest court, and notes the Restatement (Third) of Torts' view that public nuisance is ill-suited to product-related harms. Mr. Alexander also flags the panel's handling of factual findings, suggests it strayed beyond clear‑error review and highlights persistent causation gaps that may preclude a plaintiff victory on remand.

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