They want the Supreme Court to rule on the structure of the largest consolidation in the country of personal injury lawsuits against the industry.
Jump to full article: WTRF-TV Ch. 7 (Wheeling, WV), 2005-02-25
Author: Story by Juliet A. Terry
Intro: About 1,000 smokers want the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals to examine an Ohio County Circuit Court decision to throw out the trial plan that structured how their personal injury and wrongful death claims would be litigated.
The case is the largest consolidation in the country of personal injury lawsuits against the tobacco industry. The smokers are suing cigarette makers because the plaintiffs believe their smoking-related illnesses, or in some cases deaths, are the result of 50 years of misconduct by the tobacco industry.
The case has been ruminating for a few years. Last year, Ohio County Circuit Judge Arthur M. Recht said a U.S. Supreme Court ruling made it impossible for the tobacco case to move forward in its current form. . . .
Missouri attorney Ken McClain, who represents the plaintiffs in the West Virginia case, told the West Virginia Supreme Court Feb. 22 that Recht has over-read the State Farm case and incorrectly applied it to the smokers' lawsuit.
McClain, with Recht's approval, had submitted a certified question that essentially asks the Supreme Court to review Recht's decision. The high court has not yet accepted the certified question, but it allowed McClain to argue his motion in person.
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