The Legal Battles Of Tobacco Companies - 1154 Words

For years on end, smokers, their families, and even certain government entities have filed suit against tobacco companies. The most recent litigation to date, is one of Cynthia Robinson against big time repeat player, RJ Reynolds. The case is one of thousands filed in Florida after a tossed out $145 billion class action verdict, by the State Supreme Court in 2006. To summarize, the verdict stated that amount awarded by a Miami jury to smokers was excessive. However, the court did affirm the jury s conclusions that tobacco companies misrepresent the addictive nature and health hazards involved with the usage of cigarettes (Gersten). This case opened the door for ill smokers and their families to use these findings as the stones in a sling†¦show more content†¦Product liability - the tobacco companies made and marketed a product that was unfit to use. Negligent advertising - the tobacco companies failed to warn consumers of the risks of smoking cigarettes. Fraud, and [the] vio lation of state consumer protection statutes’. The defendant tobacco companies came out victorious in these original cases. This is partly due to their inability to successfully link tobacco use with the development of cancer. With this, tobacco companies were able to cling to the hypothesis that many factors contributed to cancer, and smoking could not be considered the only cause. Due to this contention, tobacco companies could fall behind the excuse that with a lack of information, they were unable to know about the potential health risks of smoking and therefore could not research them and effectively warn the plaintiff consumers. There were many cases during the first wave of litigation. One of the most prominent, was the case of Lartigue v. R. J. Reynolds. The tobacco company formed their argument by stating that there could be no causal link between the plaintiffs usage of their product, and cancer. The plaintiff based her claims on the breach of warranty and negligenc e. Her complaint alleged that the consumption of the defendants product was the cause of her late husbands death. The case lasted several weeks, and ended with a short