Plaintiffs said in their brief that "for over 30 years, Philip Morris falsely reported on its cigarette packages that consumers would receive lower amounts of tar and nicotine from Marlboro Lights than from regular Marlboro cigarettes." Plaintiffs allege that Philip Morris is exposed to liability for fraud under state consumer protection laws.
Philip Morris in essence argues that only the federal government could regulate cigarette companies because the federal government has preempted the field of cigarette marketing, thereby eviscerating the ability of the states to police fraud on the part of the cigarette industry.
--Nina M. Lentini
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