A 2009 law, the Family Smoking Prevention & Tobacco Control Act, empowered the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to watch over the industry and establish restrictions on the sale, promotion and distribution of tobacco products, [image-nocss] the cigarette makers said in a motion filed Thursday in federal court in Washington.
"The newly established federal regulatory framework extinguishes the court's jurisdiction over this case," said the companies.
The motion was filed eight days after U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler ordered proposed marketing statements on the health hazards of smoking cigarettes submitted by the U.S. Department of Justice to be made public. Kessler has not ruled on whether she will adopt the proposed statements.
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In 2006, Kessler found that the companies violated anti-racketeering laws by conspiring to hide the dangers of cigarettes. Kessler ordered the companies to stop marketing cigarettes as "light" and "low-tar" and to make statements about the health effects of smoking in newspapers and magazines and on cigarette packages.
Charles Miller, a Justice Department spokesperson, and Steven Callahan, a spokesperson for Altria, declined to comment, said Bloomberg.
The case is U.S. v. Philip Morris USA Inc. (99-cv-02496), U.S. District Court, District of Columbia (Washington).
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