Judge Slashes Tobacco Giant's $$$$$$$ Penalty
By John Millrany - August 10, 2001It’s time for cancer victim Richard Boeken to take a deep breath-if he still can-and accept a $100 million settlement or risk a new trial in the $3 billion punitive-damage case against tobacco giant Phillip Morris.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charles W. McCoy Jr. ruled Aug. 9 that a previous jury decision awarding Boeken $3 billion in punitive damages was "legally excessive," but he would only grant a retrial if the plaintiff refuses a $100 million settlement instead.
Boeken, a resident of Topanga, smoked cigarettes for 40 of his 56 years before being diagnosed in 1999 with brain cancer, which had spread from his lungs. He claimed in his lawsuit that he was victimized by a tobacco industry campaign that portrayed smoking as "cool" but concealed its dangers.
In his 27-page ruling Thursday, McCoy vigorously supported the jury’s intent but found the $3 billion penalty "legally excessive because it produced an excessive punitive-to-compensatory ratio."
The jury found Phillip Morris liable for $5.4 million in compensatory damages, but when the $3 billion punitive charge was rung up, PM cried foul and on Aug. 6 urged McCoy to slash the fine—the largest in an individual lawsuit against tobacco. It had hoped to reduce the assessment to $25 million, more in keeping with similar penalties of late.
In Thursday’s action, McCoy upbraided PM for going "to extraordinary lengths to hide its own scientific information" concerning health risks from smoking. "Phillip Morris’ conduct was in fact reprehensible in every sense of the word, both legal and moral," McCoy wrote.
Individual smokers’ lawsuits on the West Coast have been a burr in the side of Phillip Morris, including a $26.5 million verdict in San Francisco and a $32 million judgment in Portland, OR, both of which are on appeal.
According to AP’s Cadonna Peyton, Publisher Tom Harrison of Lawyers Weekly USA expected the damages to be reduced by McCoy but was surprised by the $100 million sum.
"It’s staggering," Harrison said. "It’s far, far, far more than any other punitive award that has been upheld on appeal in California. Phillip Morris will obviously appeal (and) try to get the punitive damages reduced …further."
There has been no comment from Phillip Morris. Boeken’s attorney said the plaintiff will decide within the next few weeks whether to accept the $100 million award. | 
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