Elaine Hess, whose husband died in 1997 at the age of 55 due to smoking-related illness, has been awarded an $8 million settlement in the lawsuit she subsequently brought against tobacco giant Philip Morris. The jury deliberated for 2 days, weighing evidence that suggested nicotine is addictive and that Philip Morris was aware of that fact.
This verdict settles the first of thousands of similar suits pending in Florida. The individual lawsuits are a result of the Florida Supreme court's refusal to reinstate a $145 billion punitive damages verdict awarded by a Miami jury to a 2006 state-wide class action.
