U.S. Wins Ruling in Tobacco Case
The tobacco industry lost a round in its bid to win dismissal of a Justice Department lawsuit seeking $289 billion and alleging a conspiracy to deceive the public about the dangers of smoking.
U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler sided with the Justice Department in a ruling that prevents tobacco firms from using a number of defense arguments to undermine the case. The thrust of those claims are that the government itself knew about smoking dangers for years and did little or nothing, and in some cases actively encouraged conduct that is key to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit was filed by the Clinton administration in 1999 and was inherited by the Bush administration’s Justice Department. It is scheduled for trial in September 2004.
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