Jump to full article: Boston (MA) Globe, 2007-06-12
Author: John Donnelly, Globe Staff
Intro: In a major blow to tobacco companies, the US Supreme Court yesterday denied tobacco giant Philip Morris' s request to shift all smokers' lawsuits to federal courts, which generally give greater leeway to corporations and smaller damage awards to those claiming harm from years of exposure to tobacco smoke.
The decision, in a case involving the alleged marketing deception of "light" cigarettes, is expected to affect liability lawsuits against tobacco companies filed in 20 states, including Massachusetts. Some state awards in recent years have been in the billions of dollars, although many of those judgments were later overturned on appeal. . . .
"This is a big loss for the industry," said Edward L. Sweda Jr. , senior attorney for the anti smoking Tobacco Products Liability Project at Northeastern University School of Law in Boston. "If the appeals court ruling had been upheld, it would have basically eliminated state courts as a venue for lawsuits against the tobacco companies."
Sweda said other industries, such as pharmaceutical companies and automakers, could argue that lawsuits against them should move to federal court because of their relationship with federal regulators.
William Ohlemeyer, associate general counsel for Philip Morris, downplayed the Supreme Court's decision as "narrow" and insisted it would not affect the case.
"We have compelling defenses to the Watson claim that have been advanced in state courts," Ohlemeyer said in a statement. . . .
In Massachusetts, a suit filed by Lori Aspinall and Thomas Geanacopoulos in 1998 is now before the state Superior Court. In 2004, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, in a 4- to -3 decision, allowed smokers to proceed with a class-action suit over the marketing of light cigarettes.
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