Canada Government Must Face B.C. Tobacco Suit
Canada’s federal government, accused of promoting so-called light cigarettes, must be a defendant in a British Columbia lawsuit seeking compensation from tobacco companies for the treatment of smoking-related illnesses.
The Court of Appeal for British Columbia yesterday overturned a trial judge’s decision that cleared the federal government and, in a 3-2 decision, ruled it must be added as a co-defendant as requested by the tobacco companies.
“The B.C. decision will demonstrate that the government of Canada has known about the risks associated with smoking for decades and that it instigated and promoted the development and sale of lower-tar tobacco products,” Donald McCarty, Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd.’s vice president of law, said in a statement.
British Columbia was the first Canadian province to sue over the cost of treating smokers in the government-funded health-care system for cancer and other tobacco-related illnesses. The province is seeking unspecified damages, as is New Brunswick. Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, sued tobacco manufacturers for C$50 billion ($47 billion).
The tobacco companies, which include Japan Tobacco Inc.’s JTI-MacDonald, British American Tobacco Plc and Rothmans Inc., claim the federal government knew of the risks of smoking, while regulating the industry, and in the 1960s pressed the tobacco manufacturers to promote lower-tar cigarettes.
The government’s actions contributed to the losses the cigarette manufacturers may incur from the provincial suits, the companies said.
Officials from Canada’s Justice Department didn’t immediately respond to a phone call seeking comment after regular business hours yesterday.
The case is British Columbia vs. Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd., 2009 BCCA 540, Court of Appeal for British Columbia (Vancouver).
