Recent Development by R. Brent Walton
The American tobacco industry has received a reprieve from the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit from having to defend itself against the largest class action ever attempted in a federal court. On February 17, 1995, a judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana certified as a class “all nicotine dependent persons” in the United States, its territories, and Puerto Rico who have purchased and smoked cigarettes manufactured by any one of the seven largest tobacco companies in America. With much grandeur, District Court Judge Jones pronounced that he would certify such a class, taking the “first step” toward “aiding and promoting the efficient litigation of the core liability and punitive damages issues” in litigation against the largest tobacco companies in America. This litigation battle-royale was to decide, in one standard-sized, mahogany courtroom, all of the core liability and punitive damage issues relating to allegations that the defendant tobacco companies fraudulently misrepresented the health risks of smoking and deceived the class members about the addictive properties of nicotine. The defendant tobacco companies appealed the class-certification decision, claiming that the district court judge erred when he certified the class, abusing the discretion granted him under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with the tobacco companies and held that the district court abused its discretion when it certified a class of nearly all the addicted cigarette smokers that have ever lived. Castano v. American Tobacco Co., 84 F.3d 734, 740-41, 752 (5th Cir. 1996).
About the Author
R. Brent Walton.
Citation
71 Tul. L. Rev. 635 (1996)