The Supreme Court on Monday threw out an $80 million verdict against cigarette maker Philip Morris.
The verdict, for the family of an Oregon janitor who died in 1997 of lung cancer, should be reviewed by lower courts to ensure it is not unconstitutionally excessive, justices said. . . .
[I]t was the second victory for Philip Morris in its legal battles with the family of Jesse D. Williams, who accused the company of concealing information about the dangers of smoking. Williams started smoking in the 1950s when serving in the Army in Korea, and later he smoked three packs of Marlboros a day.
After a jury in 1999 ordered the company to pay the Williams family $79.5 million in punitive damages, the judge reduced the award to $32 million. A state appeals court reinstated the punitive damages award last year.
Read the AP report via The Washington Post here.