Affirmed: Tobacco Companies are Racketeers

(May 26, 2009)—

 On Friday, May 22, the U.S. Court of Appeals upheld a lower court ruling that declared the tobacco industry guilty of civil racketeering. This ruling capped a very bad week for Big Tobacco that also included legislative progress on two important bills in the U.S. House and Senate, and marked a major victory for public health. The American Lung Association praises the Court for upholding the historic 2006 decision by U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler that tobacco companies had engaged—and continue to engage—in a massive, decades-long campaign to defraud the American public about the dangers of smoking.

The Appeals Court affirmed the lower court’s ruling that found cigarette manufacturers guilty of racketeering by lying to the public about the dangers of smoking, including denying that nicotine is addictive, making false health claims about “light” and “low-tar” cigarettes and falsely denying that they marketed to kids.  The three-judge panel was unanimous in delivering this major public health victory.

The Court also affirmed Judge Kessler’s finding that the tobacco industry was likely to continue to violate the law in the future, and that in order to protect the public interest, six public health groups, including the American Lung Association, would be allowed to be intervenors in the case.  Intervention by the public health groups was ruled necessary by Judge Kessler because the federal government had failed to protect the public interest by bowing to political pressure and substantially altering the remedies it had previously sought.

The Court also upheld remedies originally ordered by Judge Kessler, including a requirement that the tobacco companies publish statements and packet inserts to correct misinformation delivered to deceive the public. While these remedies are a step in the right direction, the Lung Association is disappointed that the Court didn’t go further and order additional remedies recommended by public health groups, such as counter-marketing and requiring tobacco companies to pay for smoking cessation programs.  The Lung Association and the other public health intervenors will continue to push for stricter remedies that will prevent the tobacco industry from breaking the law in the future.

Earlier in the week, the U.S. Congress took action on two major bills pending in the Congress. The U.S. Senate’s Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) sent the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act to the full Senate for its consideration. Passage of this critical public health legislation will provide the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) urgently needed regulatory control over tobacco products.  The U.S. House of Representatives also passed the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act, which will curb tobacco tax evasion that occurs with online sales of tobacco products.