Coljuegos, an administrative authority in charge of promotional games in Colombia, prohibited COLTABACO S.A., a Philip Morris International affiliated company, to continue using promotional strategies, such as raffles, at the point of sale, applying the general advertisement, promotion and sponsorship ban established by Law No. 1335 of 2009. This decision cites the Constitutional Court precedent (Caceres Corrales v. Colombia) and holds that the FCTC Guidelines should be considered subsequent agreements under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties.
Compañia Colobiana de Tabaco S.A. (COLTABACO) v. Coljuegos, Coljuegos, 2014
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.
A violation of the right to expression, free speech or similar right to express oneself without limitation or censorship. The industry may claim that a regulation infringes on their right to communicate with customers and the public. Similarly, they may claim that mandated warnings infringe on their freedom to communicate as they desire.
A claim of a violation of a tobacco control law or statute.
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.
"... the highest constitutional court has taken a position on the matter, in the case analyzed in this decision, establishing that the prohibition of promotion of Law 1335 of 2009 is broad, and the guidelines on advertising, promotion and sponsorship of tobacco of the WHO can be used to interpret it, all the more so when, according to the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, that instrument is one of the sources for valid interpretation."
[Citing the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties] " '3. In addition to the context, the following must also be taken into account: a) any separate agreement among the parties concerning the interpretation of the treaty or the implementation of its provisions'.... As can be seen at the website of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control of the WHO (http://www.who.int/fctc/guidelines/adopted/article 13/es/), the guidelines on advertising, promotion and sponsorship of tobacco were approved by the parties to the treaty, for which reason they constitute a valid standard for its interpretation."
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.
Coljuegos, an administrative authority in charge of promotional games in Colombia, prohibited COLTABACO S.A., a Philip Morris International affiliated company, to continue using promotional strategies, such as raffles, at the point of sale, applying the general advertisement, promotion and sponsorship ban established by Law No. 1335 of 2009. This decision cites the Constitutional Court precedent (Caceres Corrales v. Colombia) and holds that the FCTC Guidelines should be considered subsequent agreements under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties.