(Updated 06.01.09)

On August 17, 2006, U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler issued a final opinion in the U.S. government's landmark lawsuit against the major tobacco companies that found the companies have violated civil racketeering laws and defrauded the American people by lying for decades about the health risks of smoking and their marketing to children.

Judge Kessler also found that the tobacco companies' wrongdoing continues today: "The evidence in this case clearly establishes that Defendants have not ceased engaging in unlawful activity ... Their continuing conduct misleads consumers in order to maximize Defendants revenues by recruiting new smokers (the majority of whom are under the age of 18), preventing current smokers from quitting, and thereby sustaining the industry" (pages 1604-1605 of the opinion).

On May 22, 2009, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued a unanimous opinion upholding Judge Kessler's findings and almost all remedies she imposed in the case.

These rulings are the culmination of a lawsuit the U.S. Department of Justice filed under the civil racketeering (RICO) law on September 22, 1999, to hold the tobacco companies legally accountable for decades of illegal and harmful practices. The trial in the case lasted from September 21, 2004, to June 9, 2005.

Judge Kessler's 1,683-page final opinion powerfully and thoroughly detailed the tobacco companies' unlawful activity and the devastating consequences for our nation's health over more than 50 years.

"(This case) is about an industry, and in particular these Defendants, that survives, and profits, from selling a highly addictive product which causes diseases that lead to a staggering number of deaths per year, an immeasurable amount of human suffering and economic loss, and a profound burden on our national health care system. Defendants have known these facts for at least 50 years or more. Despite that knowledge, they have consistently, repeatedly, and with enormous skill and sophistication, denied these facts to the public, to the Government, and to the public health community... In short, Defendants have marketed and sold their lethal products with zeal, with deception, with a single-minded focus on their financial success, and without regard for the human tragedy or social costs that success exacted," Judge Kessler wrote (pages 3-4 of the opinion).

Despite the overwhelming wrongdoing she found, Judge Kessler felt constrained in the remedies she could impose on the tobacco industry because of a controversial appeals court ruling that restricted financial remedies under the civil RICO law.

Public health organizations and the government's expert witnesses had recommended that the tobacco companies be required to pay more than $130 billion to fund programs to help smokers quit and prevent kids from starting to smoke. However, Judge Kessler said the appeals court ruling did not allow these remedies and issued a Final Judgment and Remedies Order that:

• Prohibits the tobacco companies from committing acts of racketeering in the future or making false, misleading or deceptive statements concerning cigarettes and their health risks.
• Bans terms including "low tar," "light," "ultra light," "mild," and "natural" that have been used to mislead consumers about the health risks of smoking and prohibit the tobacco companies from conveying any explicit or implicit health message for any cigarette brand.
• Requires the tobacco companies to make corrective statements concerning the health risks of smoking and secondhand smoke and their deceptive practices through newspaper and television advertising, their web sites and as part of cigarette packaging.
• Extends and expands current requirements that the tobacco companies make public their internal documents produced in litigation.
• Requires the tobacco companies to report marketing data annually to the government.

On July 22, 2005, Judge Kessler granted a motion by six public health groups to intervene and become parties to the case. These organizations are the Tobacco-Free Kids Action Fund (a 501(c)(4) organization affiliated with the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids), American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights and National African American Tobacco Prevention Network. While welcoming Judge Kessler's liability ruling, these organizations filed legal briefs calling for stronger remedies in the case including funding for tobacco prevention and cessation programs.