Younger Abstention Requires Dismissal of Plavix Makers’ Injunction Case, 9th Cir. Affirms

SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court has upheld dismissal of a lawsuit filed by the makers of Plavix seeking to enjoin the Hawaii attorney general from suing them for deceptive marketing practices, ruling that the Younger abstention doctrine prevents it from hearing the action.

In an Oct. 29 opinion, a 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel concluded that although the state court action is being litigated by private counsel, it was brought by the state in its sovereign capacity, invoking the Younger doctrine.

The panel held that what matters for Younger abstention is whether the state proceeding falls …