Illinois Supreme Court Reverses $10.1B Verdict Against Philip Morris

Fox News reports:

In a major victory for the tobacco giant, the Illinois Supreme Court Thursday reversed a $10.1 billion verdict against Philip Morris USA, with instructions to dismiss the class action.

The ruling in the case, in which Philip Morris, unit of Altria Group Inc (MO), was accused of defrauding customers into thinking "light" cigarettes were safer than regular smokes, sent Altria shares up more than 5 percent.

The deeply divided Illinois Supreme Court ruled that the Federal Trade Commission specifically allowed companies to characterize their cigarettes as "light" and "low tar," so Philip Morris did not improperly mislead customers about the health impact of its cigarettes.

One wonders if these local smoking bans are constitutional because the federal government says cigarettes are a legal product.