Legal

National

Big tobacco says corrective statements go too far
In a federal hearing this month, tobacco companies argued that the corrective statements the U.S. Justice Department has required them to publish are too harsh, and constitute a violation of the companies’ First Amendment rights. In a 2006 verdict, U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler found the tobacco companies guilty of conspiring to conceal the dangers of cigarette smoking for decades, and ordered that the tobacco companies pay for broadcast and print ads containing corrective statements to shed light on the health effects of smoking. Judge Kessler has given no indication of when her verdict related to these proceedings can be expected. Read more here.

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International

Australia tobacco law did not infringe rights: Court (Australia)
The recently enacted law in Australia that required cigarettes to be sold in plain packaging was found not to infringe on the tobacco companies’ intellectual property rights. The highest court in Australia released its full opinion this month on the case in which it dismissed the claims against the plain packaging laws by international cigarette companies British American Tobacco, Imperial Tobacco, Philip Morris, and Japan Tobacco. This eliminates any domestic issues with the new plain packaging law in Australia, and sends a positive message to other countries that may be considering enacting similar policies such as Britain, Canada, and New Zealand among others. Click here to read more.

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