A class of Illinois residents sued several tobacco companies for unjust enrichment. Following the dismissal of claims brought by an original named plaintiff, the plaintiffs filed a fourth amended complaint naming a new representative plaintiff and reinstating allegations that the defendants engaged in a decade-long conspiracy to suppress information about the addictive nature of nicotine and knowingly and falsely marketed Marlboro Lights as being less harmful than other cigarettes. The Court granted the defendants' motion to dismiss the fourth amended complaint, finding that the plaintiffs had failed to assert any personal detriment suffered or any legal right invaded as a result of defendants' alleged actions.
Cleary, et al. v. Philip Morris USA, Inc., et al., Case No. 09 C 1596 (N.D. Ill. June 22, 2010).
United States
Jun 22, 2010
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division
An individual or organization may seek civil damages against a tobacco company based on the claim that the use of tobacco products causes disease or death. Some of these cases will relate to general tobacco products, while others will relate to specific subcategories of tobacco products--for example, light or low products, menthol or other flavored products. Additionally, there may be cases relating to exposure to secondhand smoke.
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.
The court might consider procedural matters without touching the merits of the case. These might include: improper joinder, when third parties, such as Health NGOs or government officials, seek to become parties to the suit; lack of standing, where a plaintiff fails to meet the minimum requirements to bring suit; lack of personal jurisdiction, where the court does not have jurisdiction to rule over the defendant; or lack of subject matter jurisdiction, where the court does not have jurisdiction over the issue at suit.
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.
"By contrast, the plaintiffs in this case have not alleged that they would not have purchased the cigarettes had they known of the risks they presented, nor have they alleged that the cigarettes they purchased were unfit for their intended purposes. And the fourth amended complaint contains no underlying ICFA, breach of warranty, or other claim that includes an allegation of actual injury or harm to plaintiffs. The fourth amended complaint contains dozens of pages of factual allegations about the ways defendants concealed and failed to disclose the truth, but it does not connect those allegations to any detriment caused by that alleged wrongdoing. To put it another way, even if defendants had a duty to disclose the dangers of smoking (a matter the Court need not determine), the complaint fails to allege that plaintiffs would have acted any differently had they been fully informed. One can certainly assume that it was to the plaintiffs’ detriment to smoke cigarettes in the first place, just as it was to defendants’ benefit to profit off the sale of cigarettes. Without some allegation of a connection between the acts of concealment and plaintiffs’ smoking behavior, however, the complaint fails to allege the basis for a claim of unjust enrichment under Illinois law."
"The fourth amended complaint alleges that plaintiffs were deprived of “their legal right to know and to be fully apprised of the true nature and extent of the hazards” of cigarettes, FAC 219 & 240, and were “intentionally [exposed] to [heightened] adverse effects on their health” when defendants sold them addictive and hazardous products without fully informing them of the risk of addiction and health risks of smoking. Id. 219. These alleged detriments stem from what plaintiffs characterize as defendants’ duty to disclose the health risks associated with cigarettes, and conversely, plaintiffs’ legal right to be informed of those risks. Plaintiffs have not, however, identified any Illinois authority tending to establish that defendants had such a duty to disclose or plaintiffs had a legal right to be informed of the dangers of cigarettes."
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.
A class of Illinois residents sued several tobacco companies for unjust enrichment. Following the dismissal of claims brought by an original named plaintiff, the plaintiffs filed a fourth amended complaint naming a new representative plaintiff and reinstating allegations that the defendants engaged in a decade-long conspiracy to suppress information about the addictive nature of nicotine and knowingly and falsely marketed Marlboro Lights as being less harmful than other cigarettes. The Court granted the defendants' motion to dismiss the fourth amended complaint, finding that the plaintiffs had failed to assert any personal detriment suffered or any legal right invaded as a result of defendants' alleged actions.