January 5, 2026
Hon. Shelley C. Chapman (Ret.), senior counsel in Willkie’s Restructuring Department and Chair of the Alternative Dispute Resolution practice, has been profiled by Law360 in a two-part Q&A to discuss her experience mediating a $7.4 billion settlement in the chapter 11 case of OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma.
As court-appointed mediator in the Purdue Pharma chapter 11 – one of the largest and most consequential bankruptcies in U.S. history – Judge Chapman led a complex, multi-party mediation between and among the debtors, the creditors’ committee, state attorneys general, members of the Sackler family, and representatives of private claimants including individual victims. She emphasized the collective effort that made the agreement possible. “There were so many people who played pivotal roles in getting this done,” Judge Chapman told Law360. “It truly, truly took a village of people to do this.”
Judge Chapman facilitated a global resolution, leading to a confirmed plan of reorganization that implements a multibillion dollar settlement with members of the Sackler family and provides at least $7.4 billion in recovery to public and private creditors, funding victim compensation and opioid addiction treatment programs nationwide. Beyond financial relief, the settlement includes several non-monetary aspects. “There will be a public document repository that is to be funded out of the settlement and will be the home of literally hundreds of millions of pages of documents from Purdue,” said Judge Chapman. “It will . . . be the largest such repository in history, even bigger than the tobacco industry repository created as part of that litigation.”
In the profile, Judge Chapman discussed her entry into the case, the preparation for her role as mediator, and the challenges she confronted while presiding over the complex negotiations. She referenced working alongside Willkie counsel Jamie Eisen, her former law clerk, and detailed the mediation process, which often ran around the clock in virtual sessions. “Because we held most of the sessions by Zoom, we adopted the procedure of setting up a call almost every day. There were some days when people stayed on the Zoom call for 18 hours a day.”
Judge Chapman also reflected on the principles that guided the process: “Patience and perseverance pays off. I approach every case as a must-do and must-resolve. I try to get folks to park their emotions at the door, which isn't always possible, but always has to be a goal. You have to be candid about the strengths and weaknesses of each party's position.”
Read her full profile here.
As court-appointed mediator in the Purdue Pharma chapter 11 – one of the largest and most consequential bankruptcies in U.S. history – Judge Chapman led a complex, multi-party mediation between and among the debtors, the creditors’ committee, state attorneys general, members of the Sackler family, and representatives of private claimants including individual victims. She emphasized the collective effort that made the agreement possible. “There were so many people who played pivotal roles in getting this done,” Judge Chapman told Law360. “It truly, truly took a village of people to do this.”
Judge Chapman facilitated a global resolution, leading to a confirmed plan of reorganization that implements a multibillion dollar settlement with members of the Sackler family and provides at least $7.4 billion in recovery to public and private creditors, funding victim compensation and opioid addiction treatment programs nationwide. Beyond financial relief, the settlement includes several non-monetary aspects. “There will be a public document repository that is to be funded out of the settlement and will be the home of literally hundreds of millions of pages of documents from Purdue,” said Judge Chapman. “It will . . . be the largest such repository in history, even bigger than the tobacco industry repository created as part of that litigation.”
In the profile, Judge Chapman discussed her entry into the case, the preparation for her role as mediator, and the challenges she confronted while presiding over the complex negotiations. She referenced working alongside Willkie counsel Jamie Eisen, her former law clerk, and detailed the mediation process, which often ran around the clock in virtual sessions. “Because we held most of the sessions by Zoom, we adopted the procedure of setting up a call almost every day. There were some days when people stayed on the Zoom call for 18 hours a day.”
Judge Chapman also reflected on the principles that guided the process: “Patience and perseverance pays off. I approach every case as a must-do and must-resolve. I try to get folks to park their emotions at the door, which isn't always possible, but always has to be a goal. You have to be candid about the strengths and weaknesses of each party's position.”
Read her full profile here.
