http://www.tobacco.org/newsfeed/lawsuit/engle.rss Latest top tobacco news headlines en-us http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/21/business/21smoke.html http://tobacco.org/news/293073.html Legal experts predict that thousands of tobacco lawsuits could gain momentum in Florida after a Fort Lauderdale jury ordered Philip Morris USA to pay $300 million to a former smoker who says she needs a lung transplant. If it survives an appeal, the verdict late Thursday would be the nation's largest award of damages to an individual suing a tobacco company and could encourage thousands of plaintiffs who have filed similar cases in Florida, according to Clifford E. Douglas of the University of Michigan Tobacco Research Network. . . . Brendan J. McCormick, a spokesman for Altria, said Friday that the company expected the federal appellate court to reject the standards of proof set by the state Supreme Court. "What you have is a defined number of cases in Florida with unique issues that will ultimately be resolved on appeal," he said. David J. Adelman, a tobacco analyst for Morgan Stanley, said the Florida case and, separately, forthcoming class-action lawsuits over light cigarette claims pose an "undeniable" increase in the industry's legal risk "which had previously declined to an unprecedented low point." In an interview, Mr. Adelman noted that there were no jury trials in cigarette cases all of last year, and that other states had decertified class-action suits New York Times Sat, 21 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/broward/blog/smokingverdict.pdf http://tobacco.org/news/293063.html We the Jury, return the following verdict: 1. Was the negligence on the part of Philip Morris USA a legal cause of Lucinda Naugle's emphysema? Yes-V. 2. Were the defective cigarettes by reason of their design, manufactured by Philip Morris USA, a legal cause of Lucinda Naugle's emphysema? Yes-V. 3. Did Lucinda Naugle reasonably rely on a statement to her detriment made by Philip Morris USA that intentionally concealed or omitted material information? Yes-V. 4. On the claim of fraud by conspiracy, were acts done by Philip Morris USA, in furtherance of the conspiracy a legal cause of Ms. Naugle's injuries? Yes-V. . . . 8. Please state whether, under the circumstances of this case, you find by clear and convincing evidence that punitive damages are warranted against Defendant, Philip Morris USA. Yes-V. In determining the amount of punitive damages, if any, please state the total amount which you feel should-be assessed against the defendant. The Court, in entering judgment, will not reduce the amount of punitive damages by the percentage of fault which you find is chargeable to the plaintiff. 9. What is the total amount of punitive damages, if any, you find, by the greater weight of the evidence, should be assessed against Philip Morris USA? $244,000,000 SO SAY WE ALL, this 19 day of November, 2009, Sun-Sentinel Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/broward/blog/nauglelawsuit.pdf http://tobacco.org/news/293062.html 37. As a direct and proximate result of smoking cigarettes manufactured and sold by one or more Defendants, Plaintiff suffered from one or more of the diseases and medical 6 conditions described, including emphysema/COPD, which was caused by her addiction to cigarettes that contain nicotine and each of which manifested during the class period. COUNT I: STRICT LIABILITY . . . COUNT II: FRAUD BY CONCEALMENT . . . COUNT III: CONSPIRACY TO COMMIT FRAUD BY CONCEALMENT . . . COUNT IV: NEGLIGENCE . . . COUNT V: BREACH OF EXPRESS WARRANTY . . . COUNT VI: BREACH OF IMPLIED WARRANTY Sun-Sentinel Tue, 02 Sep 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory?id=9135428 http://tobacco.org/news/293059.html A former smoker who just won a $300 million verdict in Florida against Philip Morris USA has pulled out of a news conference about the case. Lawyers for 61-year-old Cindy Naugle will talk at the Friday news conference in Fort Lauderdale. But a spokesman for the attorneys said Naugle canceled plans to speak due to health reasons. Naugle has emphysema. AP Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iM3ULceEd2Y25T-4zBO9pl3UfB3wD9C30SO80 http://tobacco.org/news/293055.html A South Florida jury on Thursday ordered Philip Morris USA to pay $300 million to a former smoker, agreeing that the tobacco company's negligence was the cause of her emphysema. The award for Cindy Naugle, 61, is the largest to date among thousands of lawsuits filed in the state against tobacco companies. "Cindy admitted her fault to the jury," her attorney, Robert W. Kelley, said in a statement. "But Philip Morris refused to accept any responsibility for her emphysema, even though she was an addicted customer for 25 years." . . . "Large verdicts encourage other large verdicts," said Richard A. Daynard, professor of law at Northeastern University and chairman of the Tobacco Products Liability Project. "I think Philip Morris has finally met its match in Florida. This gives jurors permission to fully compensate plaintiffs for all the harm they suffered and to express their moral outrage at the industry's behavior." AP Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.pointoflaw.com/archives/2009/11/is-the-bell-tol.php http://tobacco.org/news/293054.html There are 8000 more suits pending, and now that it seems clear that PM will be hemorrhaging money, I anticipate a rush to the courthouse to collect before bankruptcy ensues. At $300 million per pop, that's over $2 Trillion dollars. How did the jury come up with this punitive award, given PM's incredible existing exposure? Many states have never seen $56 million compensatory verdicts for one plaintiff. Pointoflaw.com Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/ap/ex-smoker-hopes-verdict-will-buy-a-lung-transplant-70648027.html http://tobacco.org/news/293053.html When Cindy Naugle took the witness stand in her lawsuit against tobacco company Philip Morris USA, she toted an oxygen bottle and had to pause a few minutes to catch her breath. Lawyers for the 61-year-old Naugle say her emphysema is so bad that she needs a lung transplant and can barely walk a few feet without being winded. The cause of her health problems, lawyers argued, was a 25-year smoking habit. Naugle's lawyers said the cigarette maker committed fraud. They said the tobacco company knew — but concealed — that smoking cigarettes is addictive and harmful to a person's health. Jurors agreed. On Thursday, it took the Broward County panel less than three hours to order Philip Morris to pay Naugle $300 million. It is believed to be the largest award to date among the 7,000-plus lawsuits filed in Florida against tobacco companies. "If the tobacco industry realizes what their ultimate potential exposure will be, maybe they will decide to do the right thing by these people," said Robert Kelley, the Fort Lauderdale attorney who represented Naugle. AP Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2009/11/20/former-smoker-sues-philip-morris-wins-300-million/ http://tobacco.org/news/293052.html Florida's never-ending tobacco litigation continued not to end this week. A woman in South Florida who smoked Benson & Hedges for 25 years sued Philip Morris and was awarded $300 million. Wall Street Journal Blogs healthblog@wsj.com (Jacob Goldstein) Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2009/11/fla_smoker_wins_300m_judgment.html http://tobacco.org/news/293049.html A key issue in the case was Naugle's contention that Philip Morris concealed the fact that smoking is addictive and harmful. Here's a question: Does this judgment sound fair?(online surveys) (The question closes at 9 a.m. ET on Saturday.) National Public Radio Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://tobacco.neu.edu/litigation/cases/pressreleases/naugle_verdict.htm http://tobacco.org/news/293048.html Edward L. Sweda, Jr., Senior Attorney for the Tobacco Products Liability Project (TPLP) at Northeastern University School of Law in Boston, was delighted with the jury’s verdict. “Clearly, this jury recognized the outrageous and reprehensible misconduct by Philip Morris and appropriately expressed its outrage by awarding $244,000,000 in punitive damages. This jury went far beyond a slap on the wrists and, instead, hit Philip Morris hard in order to punish the company for its extraordinary wrongdoing and to deter Philip Morris and other tobacco companies from committing similar wrongdoing in the future,” Sweda said. Mark Gottlieb, TPLP’s Director, noted that “trial lawyers should be encouraged by the success that plaintiffs in Florida have been able to achieve when juries have had the chance to review the evidence of cigarette makers’ astonishing misconduct.” Thursday’s verdict was the tenth verdict this year in Engle progeny cases in Florida. 8 out of those 10 verdicts have been for the plaintiffs Tobacco Control Resource Center Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.altria.com/media/press_release/03_02_pr_2009_11_20_01.asp http://tobacco.org/news/293047.html Philip Morris USA said today it will seek further review of a jury verdict awarding approximately $56 million in compensatory damages and $244 million in punitive damages. The verdict came in the trial of a so-called Engle case following a 2006 Supreme Court decision that decertified a class action but allowed former class members to file individual lawsuits. "From the beginning, this case was marked by a fundamentally unfair and unconstitutional trial plan that allowed the jury to rely on findings by a prior jury that have no connection to the plaintiff," said Murray Garnick, Altria Client Services senior vice president and associate general counsel, speaking on behalf of Philip Morris USA. "Today's verdict was the result of numerous erroneous rulings by the trial judge that allowed the jury to hear extensive evidence totally unrelated to the individual smoker Altria Group, Inc. Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/palm-beach/fl-naugle-smoking-lawsuit-20091119,0,7901233,full.story http://tobacco.org/news/293042.html The sister of former Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle on Thursday won a $300 million jury verdict, the largest individual win in the Big Tobacco lawsuits in Florida. Cindy Naugle, an office manager and bookkeeper at Layton's Garage in Fort Lauderdale, sued Philip Morris, owner of her cigarette brand of choice, Benson & Hedges. Naugle was found only 10 percent at fault for taking up smoking when she was 20 years old. She quit 25 years later. Her lawyers, Bob Kelley, Todd Falzone and Todd McPharlin of the Kelley Uustal law firm in Fort Lauderdale, argued that the cigarette maker committed fraud. They contended the tobacco company knew but concealed that smoking cigarettes is addictive and harmful to a smoker's health. They said Naugle took up smoking in 1968, thinking it would make her look older and sophisticated. She chose the slim, long Benson & Hedges, marketed as sophisticated and feminine, they said. Naugle, who is 60 now, has emphysema and labors to do the simplest tasks. Sun-Sentinel bwallman@SunSentinel.com (Brittany Wallman, Sun Sentinel) Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aQiBDiEE7gAg&pos=7 http://tobacco.org/news/293025.html Altria Group Inc.’s Philip Morris USA, the largest U.S. tobacco company, lost a $300 million jury verdict in a lawsuit brought by a former smoker in Florida who suffers from emphysema. The Broward Circuit Court jury yesterday awarded Cindy Naugle $56.6 million in compensatory damages and $244 million in punitive damages, said her lawyer, Robert W. Kelley, in a phone interview . . . Altria, based in Richmond, Virginia, said it will seek “further review” of the verdict. “From the beginning, this case was marked by a fundamentally unfair and unconstitutional trial plan that allowed the jury to rely on findings by a prior jury,” Murray Garnick, associate general counsel for Altria, said in a statement. The “verdict was the result of numerous erroneous rulings by the trial judge,” he said. Bloomberg News epettersson@bloomberg.net (Edvard Pettersson) Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.chieflandcitizen.com/cgi-bin/c2.cgi?022 article News 20091104160712022022001 http://tobacco.org/news/292263.html Judge Stan Griffis stays busy presiding over cases that involve family issues, probate and other non-felony civil matters, but he says it’s the foreclosures that keep him tied up these days. “Foreclosures are a staggering portion of my docket,” Griffis told Williston Rotary members last week. . . . he will hear suits filed by eight individuals against the tobacco industry. Originally a class action suit that was tried in Miami, Griffis said the case was overturned by the State Supreme Court, which also declassified the lawsuit, putting it back into the hands of the individual plaintiffs. Now those individuals have refiled the suits and they will be heard here. What that means for Levy residents, Griffis said, is the high probability of being selected to be on the juries that hear the cases. Each case is expected to last three weeks, the judge said, and senior judges will more than likely pick up his regular docket while he is occupied with the lengthy lawsuits. While Levy County has eight such suits, Alachua has 70, he said. Chiefland Citizen Wed, 04 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://publicnuisancewire.com/stories/210308-philip-morris-to-appeal-19m-verdict http://tobacco.org/news/289488.html Philip Morris USA announced on August 13 that it would appeal a Ft. Lauderdale jury verdict awarding $5.3 million in compensatory damages to the family of a former smoker. The money was awarded to 92-year-old Leon Barbanell, the husband of a woman who smoked two packs of cigarettes a day for more than 40 years. Shirley started smoking when she was 16 and died from lung cancer in 1996 at 73. The widower's attorney, Jonathan Gdanski of the Law Offices of Sheldon J. Schlesinger in Fort Lauderdale, filed suit against Philip Morris alleging the tobacco company negligently concealed facts about the dangers of smoking. The verdict is "the result of a severely prejudicial trial plan," said Murray Garnick, Altria Client Services senior vice president and associate general counsel, speaking on behalf of Philip Morris USA. "From beginning to end, this case was marked by legal rulings that should be reversed on appeal, including allowing this jury to rely almost exclusively on findings by a prior jury that have no direct connection with the plaintiff in this case." . . . "There is mixed news for both sides in this case. The plaintiff recovered $5.3 million in damages, but will receive only $1.9 million, discounted by 63.5 percent because the plaintiff's deceased wife was found to have contributed that percentage of the damages by her own conduct in smoking," said Maureen Martin, senior fellow for legal affairs at the Heartland Institute. "The plaintiff's wife continued to smoke for more than 25 years after warning labels appeared on cigarette packages warning of health hazards. The jury rightfully should have found the plaintiff's deceased wife 100-percent liable." PublicNuisanceWire.com Home News Contact About Contact Contact us at: Wed, 09 Sep 2009 04:00:00 GMT