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Price Plaintiffs Ask Illinois Supreme Court to Ignore Law in Order to Uphold $10.1 Billion Class Action VerdictNEW YORKJuly 14, 2004
"There is a reason why over 30 state and federal courts in more than 60 cases have concluded that tobacco litigation is simply not suited for class action treatment, and that reason is because every smoker’s situation is unique," said William S. Ohlemeyer, Philip Morris USA vice president and associate general counsel. "This latest filing by the Price plaintiffs brings the company one step closer to realizing its goal of overturning the judgment and decertifying the Price class," he said. The Price plaintiffs filed the brief on Monday under seal because it contained proprietary information related to Philip Morris USA. That information has been redacted, and the brief is now publicly available. Under appellate rules, Philip Morris USA will file one more legal brief later this summer addressing points raised by the plaintiffs. The Illinois Supreme Court is expected to set oral argument for later this year. On its own initiative, the Illinois Supreme Court granted direct review of the 2003 "lights" cigarette class action judgment without waiting for an intermediate appellate court’s consideration of Philip Morris USA’s appeal. In 2003, Madison County Judge Nicholas Byron ruled, following a seven-week non-jury trial, that Philip Morris USA had defrauded purchasers of Marlboro Lights and Cambridge Lights by falsely promising lower tar and nicotine than in full-flavored cigarettes, giving smokers the impression the cigarettes were less dangerous. The company contended that it never marketed the cigarettes as a safer alternative to full-flavored cigarettes, and the company followed all state and federal laws in its advertising and marketing practices. "Every pack of Marlboro Lights ever sold has contained the congressionally-mandated U.S. Surgeon General’s warning, and the company has followed all federal laws in measuring and reporting the tar and nicotine yields of those cigarettes," Ohlemeyer said.
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