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Philip Morris pulls out of secondhand-smoke case 

"While we believe that the issues raised in the case continue to be important, we do not believe that continued litigation is the best approach to pursue at this time," said Tom Ryan, a Philip Morris spokesman. . .

The report has no legal or regulatory effect, but anti-tobacco groups have used it to support their calls for stricter laws against public smoking. . .

Edward L. Sweda, senior attorney for the Tobacco Products Liability Project at Northeastern University, said he is not surprised that Philip Morris decided against taking the case to the Supreme Court.

"They filed this lawsuit not to get compensation for a real grievance . . . but to use smoke and mirrors to confuse the public about how dangerous secondhand smoke is, and to delay additional regulation," Sweda said.

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