The Maryland Supreme Court tossed Baltimore’s $266 million victory in its opioid lawsuit against a pair of drug companies in a brief order issued Friday.

The decision is a major loss for the city, which adopted a go-it-alone strategy for opioid litigation that appeared to be paying off. Baltimore still won hundreds of millions of dollars in settlements from drug companies that decided to pay out and avoid trial, but Friday’s Supreme Court decision tosses a major jury verdict that found opioid manufacturers liable for the city’s overdose crisis.

The order does not give reasons, but it refers back to a recent decision that put the opioid verdict in jeopardy. In it, the high court rejected a key legal theory that underpinned Baltimore’s arguments: that drug companies could be held responsible for “public nuisance” caused by the products they distributed.

A spokesperson for the city did not immediately provide a comment on the decision. The drug companies, McKesson and AmerisourceBergen, also did not immediately comment. AmerisourceBergen is now known as Cencora.

The Supreme Court’s order, signed by Chief Justice Matthew Fader, sends the case back to Baltimore City Circuit Court for further proceedings.

The city won $266 million at a jury trial against McKesson and AmerisourceBergen in 2024. A Baltimore judge slashed that verdict in half, offering the city a total of $152 million.

The city accepted the deal but appealed the decision and asked Maryland’s Supreme Court to take up the case right away. Friday’s order responds to that request.

About half a billion opioids flooded Baltimore City and Baltimore County between 2006 and 2019, the same years that drug companies were aggressively marketing painkillers and underplaying the risks of addiction, court records showed. The city argued that easy access to legal opioids created a pool of users who sought out more dangerous street drugs when painkillers became less available following a federal crackdown.

The city argued that drug companies should share in the cost of remediating the overdose crisis that followed. Baltimore has experienced the highest rate of overdose deaths of any major city in America, according to a series of articles from The Baltimore Banner and The New York Times.

The Maryland Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Breweries across Virginia and Pennsylvania combined for seven golds, with Maryland also landing on the medal podium.

Virginia and Pennsylvania breweries dominated the 2025 World Beer Cup, combining for seven gold medals, while breweries in Maryland also earned medals across multiple categories at one of the beer industry’s most prestigious competition.

Organized by the Brewers Association, the World Beer Cup (WBC), now in its third decade, is one of the beer industry’s most competitive contests, with this year’s contest drawing thousands of entries from breweries around the world. The rigorous judging process places beers in style-specific categories, evaluated by an international panel of experts.

The results highlight the Mid-Atlantic’s growing strength in craft brewing, with Virginia and Pennsylvania producers earning gold in categories spanning traditional European styles and American classics, and Maryland breweries also landing on the medal podium in highly competitive fields.

Below is a breakdown of the World Beer Cup medal‑winning breweries from Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania, highlighting some of the region’s standout performances at this year’s competition.

World Beer Cup winners

Breweries from Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania earned multiple medals at the World Beer Cup (WBC) 2026, as judges recognized standout beers across multiple styles at one of the beer industry’s most competitive international competitions.

This year’s competition, held in Philadelphia, drew thousands of beers and ciders across more than 100 style categories, according to the Brewers Association.

A full list of World Beer Cup categories and results is available on the competition’s website.

Virginia breweries win multiple World Beer Cup medals

Virginia breweries delivered one of the strongest performances at the 2026 World Beer Cup, earning four gold medals with additional bronze across multiple categories, from sour beers and saisons to brown ales and seasonal specialties.

Virginia gold medal winners included:

• Aloha State of Mind, Cova Brewing Co. (Norfolk) — Gold, Gose
• Foxfield Saison, Devils Backbone Basecamp Brewpub & Meadows (Roseland) — Gold, Specialty Saison
• Boxcar Brown, Caboose Brewing Co. (Vienna) — Gold, American‑Style Brown Ale
• Pumpkin Ale, 2 Silos Brewing Co. (Manassas) — Gold, Pumpkin/Squash or Pumpkin Spice Beer