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Archive for the ‘News’ Category
All Parties Seek Supreme Court Review of Racketeering Trial: US v. Philip Morris
Friday, February 19th, 2010
Review could open door for substantial remedies that would help smokers to quit protect kids from starting –
and could force the cigarette companies to pay hundreds of billions of dollars
Today the Solicitor General of the United States filed a Petition for Writ of Certiorari with the Supreme Court of the United States seeking review of a 2-1 pre-trial ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. That ruling strictly limited the remedies available to the district court judge when she found that the cigarette industry engaged in racketeering in 2006. The Petitioners largely agree with the dissent in that decision that would permit the District Court more leeway in fashioning an appropriate set of remedies.
The pre-trial ruling for which the United States seeks review rejected the proposed remedy under the civil provisions of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) seeking forfeiture of the cigarette industry’s ill-gotten gains flowing from sales to children. It also limited other potential remedies that often available to the judiciary unless they were clearly “forward looking” and carefully tailored to prevent future RICO violations.
In 2005, when it appeared that political concerns in the Department of Justice might be interfering with the prosecution of the trial, the district judge approved a number of public health groups to join as parties to the action. Led by Tobacco Free Kids Action Fund, they too are seeking Supreme Court review of the pre-trial decision and are seeking public health remedies that could have a greater impact on tobacco control.
Philip Morris, as expected, is seeking review of the district court’s decision that found that the cigarette companies were liable under RICO. The other cigarette industry defendants are likely to appeal independently.
Mark Gottlieb, Director of the Tobacco Products Liability Project at Northeastern University School of Law in Boston said: “The Solicitor General’s Petition is enormously important because it could result in a second opportunity for the District Court to mete out justice with a fuller option of remedies in its arsenal. These could include disgorgement of ill-gotten gains; industry-funded cessation programs; counter-marketing; and many other remedies.”
Edward L. Sweda, Jr., Senior Attorney for the Tobacco Products Liability Project noted that: “Freed from the constraints of the pre-trial decision by the DC Circuit Court of Appeals, the District Court would be able to reshape the public health landscape around cigarettes and prevent future violations of RICO.”
See more on the case and trial here.
PHAI Attorney Chris Banthin Appears on WGBH with Boston Mayor Tom Menino to Discuss Smokefree Public Housing
Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010
The City of Boston is taking a leadership role in making public housing smokefree. Today, PHAI’s Chris Banthin appeared on a panel with Boston mayor Tom Menino on WGBH FM’s Callie Crossley Show to discuss why smokefree public housing is the right thing to do. Chris directs the Massachusetts Smoke-Free Housing Project. Listen to the broadcast here.
PHAI Senior Attorney Christopher Banthin discussed low tobacco control funding on WCVB News
Thursday, December 10th, 2009
Although uncredited in the clip, PHAI Senior Staff Attorney and Director of the Tobacco Control Resource Center, Christopher Banthin, discusses the public health impact of Massachusetts’ low funding commitment to tobacco control. He is responding to a report issued by the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids on the Tobacco Settlement, 11 years later.
VIDEO: State Spends Less On Tobacco Prevention Programs, Report Says (WCVB-Boston 12/9/09)
PHAI Researches Unfair Food Marketing to Kids (and those who purchase for kids)
Tuesday, December 8th, 2009
-- Staff Attorney, Cara Wilking, Presents Poster
On December 2, 2009, Mark Gottlieb and Cara Wilking presented a poster to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Healthy Eating Research program grantees in Tucson, Arizona.
PHAI is exploring how state consumer protection laws can be used to address unfair and deceptive food and beverage marketing practices directed toward children or those who purchase food and beverages for children. Such state laws may permit private citizens, attorneys general or prosecutors to bring actions consumer fraud.
Recently, Connecticut state attorney general Richard Blumenthal launched an investigation into the Smart Choices labeling program. The eight large food companies that participated in the labeling program (ConAgra Foods, General Mills, Inc., Kellogg Company, Kraft Foods, PepsiCo, Inc., Riviana Foods, Sun-Maid and Unilever) have agreed to remove the program’s logo from their products, at least during the investigation.
PHAI’s findings will be available by the Fall of 2010.
PHAI’s Tobacco Products Liability Project is mentioned in NY Times editorial
Monday, November 30th, 2009
A November 27, 2009 editorial entitled A Big Loss for Big Tobacco, stated:
Last week’s $300 million verdict, which could still be reversed or reduced on appeal, provides a strong incentive for others to sue.
Big awards can send a message to the tobacco industry, or be regarded as simply a cost of doing business. Mark Gottlieb, director of the Tobacco Products Liability Project, says more class-action suits are needed, with settlements requiring the industry to finance effective counter-marketing. State settlement money pays for the hard-hitting “truth” campaign, a nationwide effort that aims to discourage young people from smoking.
While it is always nice to be mentioned an the editorial pages of a prestigious paper, what is really important is that jurors are more frequently having the opportunity to learn about the conduct of cigarette companies and, through the civil justice system, send the message that it is unacceptable.
Tobacco Products Liability Project hails $244 million punitive damages award against Philip Morris as “entirely proportionate to the level of reprehensible misconduct by the company”
Friday, November 20th, 2009
A Fort Lauderdale, Florida jury on the afternoon of November 19, 2009 returned a nearly $300 million dollar ($55 million in compensatory damages and $244 million in punitive damages) verdict against tobacco giant Philip Morris in the trial of Naugle vs. Philip Morris. The three-week trial featured the testimony of the plaintiff, Luncinda (Cindy) Naugle, who started smoking in 1968 at the age of 20 and who quit smoking in 1993. Ms. Naugle now suffers from severe emphysema. She is represented by the Kelley Uustal Law Firm in Fort Lauderdale. [Contact Attorney Bob Kelley at 954-522-6601.]
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; the jury verdict in the Naugle case was the largest of the eight plaintiff verdicts. Thousands of other Engle progeny cases remain in the pipeline, awaiting trial in Florida.
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The Tobacco Products Liability Project (TPLP) is a project of the Public Health Advocacy Institute, which is based at Northeastern University School of Law in Boston.
Daynard and Gottlieb publish Op/Ed in Boston Globe: “How to fight America’s obesity epidemic”
Tuesday, February 10th, 2009
The article, published on January 8, 2009, addresses some of the 47 policy recommendations that were discussed at our September, 2008 conference and appear in our report to the Obama administration.
PHAI Creates Newsletter
Monday, November 26th, 2007
PHAI Fall, 2007 Newsletter We want to keep readers who are interested in the public health law work we do apprised of our programs and projects. To help accomplish this, we have created a newsletter summarizing some highlights. In this edition, we feature an article discussing our international human rights-based approach to tobacco control. Enjoy.
Raw Deal: A Report on School Beverage Contracts
Wednesday, December 6th, 2006
Raw Deal is a national survey of school beverage contracts conducted by PHAI and the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).
