A decade ago, the Illinois Supreme Court killed off a $10 billion deceptive marketing verdict against Philip Morris USA Inc., only to have a lower court reinstate the verdict this April based on evidence that came out after trial. As you’d expect, given the stakes and the unusual history of the case, the state’s highest court now wants to sort out this mess out once and for all.
In a one-sentence order issued on Wednesday, the Illinois Supreme Court agreed to review the Illinois’ Fifth District Appellate Court’s April 29 decision to reinstate a bench verdict that Philip Morris misled the public about light cigarettes. Philip Morris’ lawyers had petitioned for relief from the Fifth District’s ruling, arguing that there was no legal basis for the court to reawaken the 15-year old legal battle.
