2007- NOT A GOOD YEAR FOR TOBACCO DEFENDANTS
After years of scorched earth litigation tactics and many
successes, the tide appears to be turning. The tobacco industry
is no longer dominating the court system. Those who have
suffered the ravages of smoking are being heard - and not just
in Florida where the Florida Supreme Court rendered a stunning
defeat to tobacco defendants in Engle that will be felt for
years to come as former class members proceed with individual
lawsuits and trials.
This past summer the United States Supreme Court rejected Philip
Morris' ploy to transfer a number of tobacco lawsuits to federal
court . . .
"This is a big loss of the industry. If the appeals court ruling
had been upheld, it would have basically eliminated states courts
as a venue for lawsuits against the tobacco companies,"
said Edward L. Sweda, Jr.
