nts must have failed to notice the Congressionally mandated warning label attached to each cigarette box they have purchased for the last thirty years. George Jonas from the National Post argues that there are individuals who could have been unaware and uneducated of the risks of smoking. He says, I wouldnt dream of suggesting that there isnt anyone who could justifiably sue tobacco companies for failing to make him or her aware of the hazards of smoking. There are such beings. They include ET and other visitors from outer space, to say nothing of such figures as Sleeping Beauty or Rip van Winkle (1). In other words, people who chose to smoke within the last 30 years knew full well that there were jeopardizing their health.Nevertheless, the jurors in Florida who handed out the biggest verdict in United States history did not believe that choosing to smoke was at all relative to the case. Juror foreman, Leighton Finegan, said, This case was not about choosing to smoke. Its about if you know youre making a defective product, and these companies knew that (Driscoll 1). The jurors of this case firmly believe they are sending out a message for all companies in America that they cant fraudulently represent anything to the public (Driscoll 1). Unfortunately that is not the message their final decision sends to the American public. The jury is communicating to every smoker in America that it is not their fault they began smoking and that the blame lies with the tobacco companies such as Philip Morris, Brown & Williamson, R. J. Reynolds and Lorillard and Liggett Group.The size of the verdict the jury decided upon could directly affect cases involving smokers in the future. Millions of sick Americans could line up and file claims against tobacco companies. Also, lawyers in other states hope to win similar suits, creating legal chaos(Slaying the Puffing Dragon). Every smoker in America now has the opportunity to sue the companies who ma...
