Florida Man Wins Almost $2 Million In Case Vs Philip Morris USA

A Florida man who said his wife died of lung cancer at 73 years old won just under $2 million in liability case against Philip Morris USA, a unit of Altria Group Inc. (MO).

Schlesinger Law Firm, which represented Leon Barbanell, said its case drew on findings from the 1994 Engle class-action case, which the Florida Supreme Court decertified in 2006. However, the state's high court allowed class members to bring individual lawsuits relying on the findings.

Among the findings that supported Barbanell's case were that Philip Morris had been found negligent, its products were defective and unreasonably dangerous, nicotine is addictive, and the company conspired to conceal information regarding the health effects of smoking, attorney Jonathan Gdanski said.

The plaintiff law firm acknowledged the jury found Shirley Barbanell mostly responsible for her death but said the cigarette maker was more than a third responsible.

A Philip Morris representative confirmed by telephone that the exact percentage of liability was 37.5%, reducing the overall $5.3 million in damages to the final amount.

Altria Associate General Counsel Murray Garnick decried the ruling, saying in a prepared statement, "From beginning to end, this case was marked by legal rulings that should be reversed on appeal, including allowing this jury to rely almost exclusively on findings by a prior jury that have no direct connection with the plaintiff in this case."

The company also noted that the trial court previously ruled the plaintiff wasn't entitled to punitive damages because he couldn't prove his wife had relied on any alleged concealment.