Philip Morris *wins* a case

AP is reporting that “the Illinois Supreme Court handed the tobacco industry a huge victory Thursday by tossing out a $10.1 billion fraud judgment against Philip Morris USA over the marketing of its “light” cigarettes.”

The Illinois case came to the state’s high court from Madison County Judge Nicholas Byron, who in March 2003 ordered the company to pay $10.1 billion — $5 billion in compensatory damages, $3 billion in punitive damages and $2.1 billion in interest.

The cigarette maker argued the case should never have been declared a class-action on behalf of some 1.1 million light cigarette smokers who bought light cigarettes in Illinois.

“Industry critics warned that the Illinois decision does not insulate U.S. cigarette companies from future lawsuits. There are at least 40 similar suits pending against companies like Philip Morris and Reynolds American, any of which could result in awards into the billions of dollars, tobacco opponents said.”

Here are some of those pending suits:

— In Oregon, an appeals court is considering a $100 million punitive damage award to the estate of a 53-year-old lung cancer victim;

— In Florida, the state Supreme Court is reviewing a $145 billion punitive damage award in the Engle class action case that was overturned on appeal;

— In New York, lawsuits charge major tobacco companies marketed light cigarettes as being less harmful than regular cigarettes despite knowing they deliver comparable amounts of tar and nicotine.