Alaska's Lawsuit Against JUUL And Altria Was Dropped, And The Attorney General Said He Would Continue To Seek Legal Action
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Alaska's lawsuit against JUUL and Altria was dropped, and the attorney general said he would continue to seek legal action
A lawsuit filed by the state of Alaska against JUUL Labs and Altria Group Inc., which accused the two companies of causing a significant increase in e-cigarette use through marketing strategies targeting teenagers, was dismissed due to procedural errors. The attorney general said he would continue to seek a reopening of the case.
According to reports from Alaska News Source on December 17, the lawsuit filed by the state of Alaska against JUUL Labs, Inc. and Altria Group, Inc. was declared invalid due to procedural errors.
Alaska Attorney General Treg Taylor expressed disappointment in the verdict in the case in a statement. He added that this did not affect the merits of the case and they were still evaluating options, including reopening the case.
In subsequent questions, the outlet asked the state Law Department for specific details about the procedural errors and whether they involved jury manipulation. The Attorney General responded that although the verdict was invalid due to procedural reasons, the facts have not changed. Teenagers smoking e-cigarettes are still a threat, and relevant companies should also be responsible for the harm of their products to children.
Stefanie Miller, JUUL's vice president of external affairs, said in a statement that Alaska has one of the highest smoking rates in the country but continues to attack an "American company" that offers an alternative to combustible cigarettes. She hopes the efforts of courts and juries will be taken into consideration rather than dedicating resources to an incident nearly a decade ago.
The lawsuit opened in November and is scheduled to continue until December. The first oral argument begins on August 27, 2021. According to a Nov. 24, 2020, press release from former Acting Attorney General Ed Sniffen, the state alleges that JUUL adopted marketing tactics that Big Tobacco has used in the past, updated for the digital age, including Social media campaigns and paid "influencer" influencers targeting teens.
The lawsuit further alleges that Altria conspired with JUUL to maintain and expand the youth e-cigarette market created by JUUL and attempted to conceal its marketing practices toward youth. According to the 2019 Alaska Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 45.8% of Alaska high school students have tried e-cigarettes, and 26.1% reported using e-cigarettes. That's a significant increase since 2017, and the state's complaint contends it's a direct result of JUUL and Altria's youth-targeted marketing strategies.
