Altria, Juul to Face Suit Over $13 Billion Deal, Judge Says (1)

Altria Group Inc. and Juul Labs Inc. will likely have to face a proposed antitrust class action seeking to unwind a $12.8 billion deal that gave the legacy tobacco company a 35% stake in the vaping giant, a federal judge in San Francisco said in a “tentative” ruling.

Judge William H. Orrick indicated Wednesday that he’s inclined to let most of the lawsuit move forward in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, where it was consolidated after dozens of antitrust plaintiffs sued over deal clauses calling for Altria’s exit from the vaping market.

“Plaintiffs plausibly ...