Appeals Court Affirms Decision in Florida Case

Philip Morris USA said a Florida appellate court affirmed a jury’s 2003 decision that ordered it and Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. to pay damages to a former smoker with lung disease.

The jury awarded about $6.54 million to John Eastman but found Eastman, a former smoker with a respiratory illness, to be 50% at fault. It found Philip Morris USA, the largest U.S. cigarette maker, liable for 40% of the damages, or about $2.6 million, and found Brown & Williamson liable for 10% of the damages, or close to $654,000. The jury did not award punitive damages.

A three-judge panel of Florida’s 2nd Circuit Court of Appeal rejected Philip Morris USA’s argument that the jury was given improper legal instructions when it concluded that Eastman, 75, was entitled to damages, the company said.