Jump to full article: New York Times, 2008-12-16
Intro: The Supreme Court handed tobacco companies a major and well-deserved setback on Monday, saying smokers may proceed with lawsuits arguing that they were deceived by the marketing of "light" cigarettes.
The 5-to-4 ruling -- with Justice Anthony Kennedy casting his swing vote with the court's four most liberal members -- could do a great deal to rein in deceptive advertising by cigarette manufacturers. It was a welcome departure for a court that has been far too deferential to business. We hope it signals that the justices are moving toward a more balanced approach to business cases. . . .
In recent years, the Supreme Court has issued a series of rulings -- on everything from punitive damages to the criminal case against Enron's accounting firm -- that have made it harder for ordinary Americans to hold corporate wrongdoers accountable.
In these troubled economic times, as the nation is still trying to come to terms with the enormous damage done by the deregulation of the mortgage industry, the national mood is turning strongly toward greater regulation. It has often been observed that the Supreme Court has a tendency to follow the election returns, and it may have done so here. With this decision, the court might be indicating a greater appreciation that when companies do wrong, there needs to be a legal means of holding them accountable.
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