Walmart Leaders Lose Novel Ruling in Shareholder Opioid Case (1)

Walmart Inc.'s senior leaders lost their initial bid Wednesday to end litigation in Delaware over the retail giant’s role in fueling the nationwide opioid epidemic.

Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster issued a novel ruling for a group of pension funds, finding—tentatively—that they brought their claims within a reasonable time after learning of Walmart’s alleged violations. The lawsuit accuses the company’s board and executives of making a conscious decision to prioritize profits over following the law.

Allegations that the board made a “series of explicit or implicit decisions to continue not acting” on its opioid-related failures—a core risk for the company—call ...