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• Chinese Lawyers Search for Evidence That Tobacco Firms Targeted Minors 

Tong Lihua is preparing for a fight -- a big fight.

The director of the private Beijing Zhicheng Law Firm and head of a legal center devoted to juvenile rights, Mr. Tong has organized 10 lawyers around China to gather evidence against foreign and domestic cigarette makers, hoping one day to have a legal case against companies they believe unduly target young people.

Inspired by successful U.S. lawsuits against tobacco companies, Mr. Tong and his movement are trying to shift the global antismoking battle to a place where one in three of the world's cigarettes are smoked. It won't be easy: His effort ultimately poses a challenge to the political clout of China National Tobacco Corp., which holds a monopoly on tobacco in the world's largest cigarette market. . .

Thanks partly to recent changes in civil law, Chinese are increasingly litigating to protect their rights, taking on big-name foreign companies and even China's own government ministries. Through extensive coverage in the local press, the lawyers are hoping to persuade parents to offer evidence of how smoking has hurt their children's health. They say they will build their arguments on China's consumer law and laws that protect minors' rights.

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