Use of Tobacco Maker’s Brand Not Needed For Conspiracy Claim Under Engle

A smoker’s widow may pursue a conspiracy claim against Philip Morris USA Inc. even if her husband didn’t smoke the company’s cigarettes, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida said Jan. 6 (Sowers v. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., 2015 BL 1665, M.D. Fla., No. 3:09 C 11829).

The court, in an opinion by Judge Marvin E. Aspen, agreed with other courts on the issue.

The denial of Philip Morris’s request for summary judgment came in advance of a so-called “Engle-progeny” trial.

Plaintiff Mary Sowers brought a variety of claims against multiple defendants, including ...