et al. v. Philip Morris Incorporated Broin et al.

There are numerous varieties of injury lawsuits, some of which may be class-action suits, others of which are clearly individual in nature. Among these varieties are suits resulting from automobile accidents, fraud, libel, medical malpractice, personal injury, product liability, professional malpractice, and property damage. In 1992, the type of lawsuit for which juries awarded the lowest median monetary award was for automobile accidents, in which the median award was about $20,000. The highest-paying were product liability suits, for which the median award was more than $200,000.

After having one settlement proposal between the states and tobacco industry fall through in 1997, a $206 billion settlement was reached between the industry and 46 states in November of 1998. Purpose of the settlement was to compensate states for the medical expenses associated with treating smoking-related diseases. Four states had previously settled individually. Tobacco industry opponents criticized the settlement as soft on industry, since most of the monies would come from increased costs of cigarettes to the public. As a confirmation of those concerns, tobacco companies stock soared in value upon announcement of the settlement. Payments would be made by the Big Four of the tobacco industry: Philip Morris, R. J. Reynolds, Lorillard, and Brown & Williamson. The industry agreed to greatly curtail marketing efforts in return for immunity from all state and local government class action lawsuits. The settlement also contained provisions for financing a research foundation focused on youth smoking issues.