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• Philip Morris bond appeal bill in Illinois Senate 

A new bill aimed at capping the appeal bond for Philip Morris USA headed to the Illinois Senate Executive Committee on Thursday, said a spokeswoman for Senate President Emil Jones, a Democrat from Chicago.

Cindy Davidsmeyer, the spokeswoman, said the new bill differs from a previous measure that would have capped the cigarette maker's appeal bond at $25 million. The new measure would cap the appeal bond on a percentage basis, she added, and would allow the court some discretion.

Details of the bill were not immediately available. The bill surfaced after negotiations between Philip Morris and the plaintiffs in an Illinois class-action lawsuit appeared to have reached a dead end earlier this week.

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