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Non-Tech : Philip Morris - A Stock For Wealth Or Poverty (MO) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Rarebird who wrote (2045)	8/5/1998 9:54:00 PM
From: Ian@SI	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 6439

Looks like Oregon just assessed a 15 yard penalty for Piling On. :-) Wednesday August 5, 7:14 pm Eastern Time Company Press Release Union Fund Lawsuit Dismissed in Oregon Philip Morris U.S.A. Hails Ruling by Federal Court NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 5, 1998--A federal court in Portland today dismissed in its entirety a health care reimbursement lawsuit brought on behalf of a purported class of more than 50 labor union funds in Oregon. In his 28-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Malcolm Marsh said the labor funds had no legal basis on which to sue the tobacco industry because the funds had not sustained any direct harm. ''To allow plaintiffs to maintain actions that are entirely dependent upon the harm suffered by others threatens chaos for the judicial system, especially where others may (and have) filed their own actions and are capable of recovering a full range of damages, including the medical costs sought here,'' said the court. The ruling, the latest in a series of such dismissals of labor fund cases, affirms the industry's position that these cases are merely attempts to jump on a perceived legal bandwagon that in truth is heading nowhere. ''This ruling shows that these cases are frivolous, and the courts are not being fooled by political rhetoric,'' said Steven B. Rissman, senior counsel for Philip Morris. ''Ultimately, all of these labor fund cases should go the way of Oregon -- thrown out on the legal merits.'' Today's decision follows similar rulings by federal courts dismissing labor fund cases in Florida, Pennsylvania and Maryland. Other federal and state courts in California and New York have dismissed substantial portions of labor fund cases. Contact: Philip Morris KEN SEDA, 212/878-2144