The decision allows a fraud case to proceed in Hennepin County District Court and affects two other cigarette suits.
Jump to full article: Minneapolis (MN) Star Tribune, 2007-12-05
Author: ROCHELLE OLSON, Star Tribune
Intro: Smokers of Camel Lights and Winston Lights should get a chance to argue their fraud case against R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. in Hennepin County District Court, a three-judge panel of the state Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday in a decision that also creates an opening for two similar cases against cigarette manufacturers.
The court determined the claims were based on a broad, general duty not to deceive and were not preempted by federal law.
Although the decision comes from the case against R.J. Reynolds, it affects two other cases pending in Hennepin County against other manufacturers of light cigarettes: Philip Morris and Brown & Williamson.
Camel Lights smokers challenged the dismissal of their case by now-retired Hennepin County District Judge Diana Eagon, who barred the claim based on federal law. The smokers argued on appeal that the claims are not preempted by the Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act or the Federal Trade Commission's oversight of tar and nicotine claims in cigarette advertising. . . .
Edward L. Sweda Jr., senior attorney for the Tobacco Products Liability Project, a division of the Public Health Advocacy Institute, based at Northeastern University School of Law in Boston, called the ruling "extremely encouraging." The decision will be cited in the other pending cases, he said.
David Howard, a spokesman for R.J. Reynolds, told the Associated Press the company plans to ask the Minnesota Supreme Court to review the decision.
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