Cancer Research UK made a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) about an ad from Gallaher Ltd that opposed plain packaging for tobacco. The ad made two claims: (1) that 23.3% of cigarettes smoked in London have unpaid taxes and (2) that 19% of independent shopkeepers in London are considering closing as a result of the illegal tobacco trade. The ASA found that the second claim in the ad had not been substantiated and was misleading and ordered the company not to repeat it.
ASA Adjudication on Gallaher Ltd., Complaint Ref: A12-213116 (2013).
Government, through its agencies and officials including prosecutors, may seek to enforce its health laws. For example, the government may revoke the license of a retailer that sells tobacco products to minors. These cases may also directly involve the tobacco industry, for example, a government might impound and destroy improperly labeled cigarette packs.
Some jurisdictions allow an individual or organization to initiate an action against another private party who is not following a particular law. For example, a person may sue a restaurant that allows smoking despite a smoke free law. If the plaintiff is claiming the violation of the law caused physical harm, this may also be a personal injury case.
Measures to regulate the marketing on tobacco packages. This includes both bans on false, misleading, deceptive packaging, as well as required health warnings on packaging.
(See FCTC Art. 11)
Any violation of a law designed to ensure fair trade, competition, or the free flow of truthful information in the marketplace. For example, a government may require businesses to disclose detailed information about products—particularly in areas where safety or public health is an issue.
Regulatory measures may lead to an increase in illegal sales, such as counterfeit products. The industry may also argue that such illicit trade will reduce tobacco tax revenue.
Type of Tobacco Product
None
Limitations regarding the use of quotes The quotes provided here reflect statements from a specific decision. Accordingly, the International Legal Consortium (ILC) cannot guarantee that an appellate court has not reversed a lower court decision which may influence the applicability or influence of a given quote. All quotes have been selected based on the subjective evaluations undertaken by the ILC meaning that quotes provided here may not accurately or comprehensively represent a given court’s opinion or conclusion, as such quotes may have originally appeared alongside other negative opinions or accompanying facts. Further, some quotes are derived from unofficial English translations, which may alter their original meaning. We emphasize the need to review the original decision and related decisions before authoritatively relying on quotes. Using quotes provided here should not be construed as legal advice and is not intended to be a substitute for legal counsel on any subject matter in any jurisdiction. Please see the full limitations at https://www.tobaccocontrollaws.org/about.
"We understood that the claim was based on the results of a TRA survey amongst its members who were asked whether they were considering closing down as a result of the effects of smuggling or cross-border shopping on tobacco sales. We noted that the results of that survey indicated that 19% of those asked were considering closing down for those reasons. However, we considered that the claim stated the reason for considering closing down was "as a direct result of the illegal tobacco trade" and no mention was given to the effects of cross-border shopping. We noted Gallaher's argument that that was unlikely to materially mislead readers, but we disagreed. We considered that the omission was significant and therefore the claim misrepresented the results of the survey. We noted that only independent shopkeepers who were TRA members were asked their views and that they represented 40% of the total number of independent shopkeepers in London. We considered that their views might not have been representative of the views of independent shopkeepers in London as a whole and we considered the ad did not make sufficiently clear that only TRA members had been surveyed. For those reasons, we concluded that the claim had not been substantiated and was misleading."
Limitations regarding the use of quotes The quotes provided here reflect statements from a specific decision. Accordingly, the International Legal Consortium (ILC) cannot guarantee that an appellate court has not reversed a lower court decision which may influence the applicability or influence of a given quote. All quotes have been selected based on the subjective evaluations undertaken by the ILC meaning that quotes provided here may not accurately or comprehensively represent a given court’s opinion or conclusion, as such quotes may have originally appeared alongside other negative opinions or accompanying facts. Further, some quotes are derived from unofficial English translations, which may alter their original meaning. We emphasize the need to review the original decision and related decisions before authoritatively relying on quotes. Using quotes provided here should not be construed as legal advice and is not intended to be a substitute for legal counsel on any subject matter in any jurisdiction. Please see the full limitations at https://www.tobaccocontrollaws.org/about.
Cancer Research UK made a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) about an ad from Gallaher Ltd that opposed plain packaging for tobacco. The ad made two claims: (1) that 23.3% of cigarettes smoked in London have unpaid taxes and (2) that 19% of independent shopkeepers in London are considering closing as a result of the illegal tobacco trade. The ASA found that the second claim in the ad had not been substantiated and was misleading and ordered the company not to repeat it.