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· Canada
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Source:http://www.canada.com/,2010-05-10
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The Supreme Court of Canada said Thursday it will consider whether the federal government should be potentially liable in a multibillion-dollar lawsuit against the tobacco industry to recoup health costs related to smoking.
Without giving reasons, the court granted leave to appeal to the federal Justice Department to contest a British Columbia Court of Appeal ruling that exposed the federal government to liability by concluding it should be a third-party defendant in the suit against the tobacco industry, launched by the B.C. government.
Tobacco manufacturers maintain the federal government should share responsibility for health costs because Agriculture Canada conducted its own research while regulating the industry, knew of international studies linking smoking and lung cancer, and nonetheless encouraged and aided the industry in developing light and mild brands.
The trial, expected to begin next year, is the first of several legal challenges nationwide in which provinces are seeking to recover health costs.
The Supreme Court's eventual ruling, depending on the outcome, could open up the federal government to responsibility in other suits against the tobacco industry filed in several other provinces.
The Canadian Cancer Society contends that tobacco makers should shoulder the entire blame because companies intentionally suppressed the health hazards of light and mild brands of cigarettes, hiding the information from consumers and the government.
It was only about a decade ago that mainstream scientific research concluded that light and mild cigarettes did nothing to ease the strain on the health system.
The Canadian lawsuits were inspired by American litigation during the 1990s that ended in mass multimillion-dollar settlements. |
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