Legal
State
Philip Morris prevails in first solo smoking suit in Alaska (AK)
An Alaskan jury has found Philip Morris not liable for the death of Benjamin Francis, a man who died of lung cancer after a lifetime of smoking cigarettes. The jury determined that Philip Morris did not produce a defective product and that Francis was responsible for his decision to smoke. This was the first individual health liability and deceptive advertising case tried in the state of Alaska. Read more by clicking here.
Plaintiff found 60% at fault in Sury Engle tobacco trial (FL)
A Florida jury has awarded $1 million in damages to the son of Robert Sury, a man who died of lung cancer due to a cigarette addiction that started when he was 21 years old. Cigarette companies RJ Reynolds and Lorillard were each found to be 20% liable for Sury’s death, while Sury himself was 60% at fault. Read more here.
Federal judge upholds NYC flavor ban ordinance (NY)
A federal judge has upheld a New York City ordinance that expands upon a federal law banning flavored cigarettes, and prohibits the sale of all flavored tobacco products. In 2009, tobacco companies filed a lawsuit in an attempt to overturn the city’s flavor ban ordinance, but the judge ruled that the ordinance is supported by the federal Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which allows local governments to adopt stricter regulations than the federal law. The New York City ordinance bans tobacco flavorings related to fruit or candy, as these flavors are known to appeal to children. Click here to read more.
top
National
Obama administration appeals cigarette warning ruling
The Obama administration has filed an appeal of a recent court ruling to block the implementation of graphic cigarette package warnings. In November, U.S. District Judge Richard Leon decided tobacco companies are likely to win their lawsuit to stop the new warning labels from being rolled out, and issued a preliminary injunction to put implementation on hold until the court case is resolved, which could take years. Under federal law, the warning labels would have been required on all cigarette packages by September 2012. Read more here.
Justice Department reaches settlement with tobacco companies to continue industry document database
The U.S. Justice Department has announced that Philip Morris USA and R.J. Reynolds have agreed to pay a total of $6.25 million over the next four years to support an online database of tobacco industry documents. This decision resolves a ruling by the U.S. District Court in Washington that the tobacco companies suppressed information in order to deceive the public about the negative health effects and addictive nature of tobacco. The judge had required the companies to make their internal documents freely available to the public in order to prevent future wrongdoing. The new funds will go toward funding and enhancing access to the online Legacy Tobacco Documents Library, which is run by the University of California, San Francisco. The order still needs to be approved by the court in order to proceed. Click here to read more, here for a press release from the Justice Department, and here for the proposed consent order.
Judge blocks enforcement of tax provision in cigarette trafficking law
Federal Judge Royce Lamberth has granted a preliminary injunction to block the enforcement of the provision of the federal Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act that requires remote sellers of tobacco products to pay state and local taxes to the location where the cigarettes are shipped. The judge blocked the order because it may violate due process rights by placing the burden of paying the taxes on merchants. It is unclear what will happen with the law, but the government could challenge Lamberth’s injunction. Although the injunction has implications for taxation, it does not affect enforcement of the restrictions within the PACT Act on how tobacco products may be shipped. Read more here.
top
International
Imperial Tobacco challenges Australia plain packaging (Australia)
Within weeks after tobacco companies Philip Morris and British American Tobacco filed lawsuits against plain cigarette packaging laws that will be enacted next year, Imperial Tobacco has also launched a legal challenge in Australia’s High Court. Tobacco-growing countries have also threatened a lawsuit under world trade rules. While legal experts predict that these legal challenges will fail, the proceedings are being watched closely by governments of other countries considering similar plain packaging laws. Click here to read more about Imperial Tobacco’s case. Read about the BAT lawsuit here, and the Philip Morris case here.
top
Back to Table of Contents
|
