Tobacco.org

Philip Morris Suing Over Cigarette Display Ban // "Blowing Smoke With a Nutty Legal Theory," Says ASH 

Philip Morris has announced that it will file a law suit in Oslo, Norway, aimed at stopping a ban on the open display of cigarettes mandated by Norwegian law; a ban similar to one in effect in Iceland, and introduced in Ireland, all Canadian provinces, and New South Wales, Australia. But they seem to be blowing smoke with a nutty legal theory, says the public interest law professor behind litigation against against tobacco who has been called "Mr. Antismoking."

Philip Morris plans to argue that the Norwegian law violated the European Economic Area (EEA) Agreement; an agreement which allows Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein to participate in the Internal Market in Europe. The Agreement generally bans "quantitative restrictions on imports and all measures having equivalent effect" [Article 11]. However it explicitly exempts "measures justified on grounds of public morality .

. the protections of health . . ." [Article 13]

Philip Morris says it plans to argue that Norway's law is an import restriction which is not justified by "protections of health" because it hasn't yet produced any drop in cigarette consumption. But, says public interest law professor John Banzhaf, this argument makes no sense for several reasons.

FIRST, the Agreement exempts measures justified on the basis of health, but does not require that there be definitive proof that they work. Norway, like many other countries, mandates a wide variety of warnings, disclosures, etc. designed to protect public health, and it would be virtually impossible to validate their effectiveness. . . .

The ultimate irony is that cigarette companies would not worry about display bans, much less file law suits directed at such measures, unless they believed that the bans would in fact cut sales, and ultimately their profits. Perhaps the best argument that the bans are justified by health concerns is the very fact that Philip Morris is so upset about them, says Prof. Banzhaf, Executive Director of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH).

Jump to full article »