A tenant sued his neighbor and landlord for secondhand cigarette smoke drifting into his apartment. On appeal, the court rejected all of the tenant’s claims, ruling that (1) the landlord did not breach the covenant of quiet enjoyment because there was no evidence that the landlord substantially disturbed the tenant’s use of his land; (2) there was no battery because the smoke did not intentionally contact the tenant; (3) the trespass claims failed because the tenant did not prove that the landlord should be liable for tenant conduct it could not control; and (4) the nuisance claim failed because the tenant did not demonstrate that a tenant’s cigar smoking was an ultrahazardous activity. Finally, the court rejected the tenant’s claim for retaliatory eviction (i.e., that he was evicted because he filed a lawsuit) because the tenant was behind on his rent and could not prove that his failure to pay rent was excused.
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.
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.
A claim for violating a law protecting tenants or home owners, such as the covenant of quiet enjoyment, the warranty of habitability, constructive eviction, or trespass. For example, a tenant could sue a neighbor or the property owner when exposed to drifting secondhand smoke in their home.
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 affirm. There was no error in dismissing DeNardo's claims of negligence and breach of the covenant of habitability after he voluntarily moved for dismissal of those claims and failed to preserve them in the superior court. There was no error in rejecting his claim that the landlord breached the covenant of quiet enjoyment, because there was no evidence the landlord substantially disturbed his use of the land. There was no error in rejecting his battery claim, because there was no contention that either defendant deliberately caused smoke to contact him. There was no error in rejecting his trespass and nuisance claims, because the arguments DeNardo makes here for imposing a duty on the tenant to refrain from smoking are unpersuasive, because he has not established that the landlord should be liable in trespass for tenant conduct it cannot control, and because he has not established that cigarette smoking by a tenant is ultrahazardous activity. We also affirm the grant of summary judgment on DeNardo's claim of retaliatory eviction, because we conclude that he has not established that his failure to pay his rent in full was excused. He was therefore “in default in rent” per AS 34.03.310(c)(1) and ineligible to claim retaliatory eviction."
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 tenant sued his neighbor and landlord for secondhand cigarette smoke drifting into his apartment. On appeal, the court rejected all of the tenant’s claims, ruling that (1) the landlord did not breach the covenant of quiet enjoyment because there was no evidence that the landlord substantially disturbed the tenant’s use of his land; (2) there was no battery because the smoke did not intentionally contact the tenant; (3) the trespass claims failed because the tenant did not prove that the landlord should be liable for tenant conduct it could not control; and (4) the nuisance claim failed because the tenant did not demonstrate that a tenant’s cigar smoking was an ultrahazardous activity. Finally, the court rejected the tenant’s claim for retaliatory eviction (i.e., that he was evicted because he filed a lawsuit) because the tenant was behind on his rent and could not prove that his failure to pay rent was excused.