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• PHILIP MORRIS, et. al. v. USA: Appeal From The Judgment Of The United States District Court For The District Of Columbia (PDF) ($$) 

Pursuant to FED. R. APP. P. 41(d)(2) and D.C. Circuit Rule 41(a)(2), Defendants respectfully move this Court to stay issuance of its mandate pending the filling and disposition of timely petitions for writs of certiorari. This Court recognized the substantial nature of the arguments raised by Defendants—and the risk of irreparable harm confronting Defendants—when it issued a stay pending appeal. For similar reasons, a stay is also warranted pending the filing and disposition of Defendants’ petitions for certiorari.

A stay is appropriate because the Panel’s opinion raises substantial questions for certiorari, including: (1) whether a court of appeals is required to undertake de novo review of factual findings in a case that squarely implicates a defendant’s First Amendment rights; (2) whether corporations can be part of an “association in fact” RICO enterprise; and (3) whether jurisdiction over this case was extinguished by the enactment of new federal legislation that imposes comprehensive regulation on every aspect of Defendants’ business. The balance of equities also weighs strongly in favor of a stay because, in the absence of a stay, Defendants would be required to incur substantial, unrecoverable expenses to comply with the district court’s injunctions during the pendency of their petitions for certiorari. No other party would be prejudiced by the issuance of a stay because Defendants’ business will continue to be subject to stringent government oversight by the States and the federal Government while their petitions for certiorari are pending.

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