WASHINGTON – NACS filed a brief yesterday  in the case of U.S. v. Philip Morris in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The case is a long-running dispute between the Department of Justice and tobacco manufacturers, in which DOJ received a 2006 verdict saying that the manufacturers had misled the public about the harms posed by smoking. 

At that time, the Court entered an order requiring manufacturers to inform the public about their transgressions. The order included a requirement that cigarette retailers maintain large signs (18” by 30”) at their points of sale, in order to provide information about the case and the misinformation on the part of cigarette manufacturers. Such signs not only would commandeer valuable counter space that is normally used for selling products, but could also be read by customers as statements that retailers misled them.

NACS opposed the order on appeal before the DC Circuit Court of Appeals and was successful in 2009. Now, the District Court is again considering the point of sale sign requirement.  NACS’ brief strongly urges the District Court to abandon any point-of-sale sign requirement.

The full brief filed by NACS in the case of U.S. v. Philip Morris is available, here.