Court Overrules Judge on Tobacco Decision

Court Overrules Judge on Tobacco Decision

Monday, July 14, 2003 11:33 p.m. ET

MOUNT VERNON , Ill. (AP) -- An Illinois appeals court ruled Monday a state judge must reconsider his decision to reduce the bond Philip Morris USA must post for its appeal of a $10.1 billion lawsuit over light cigarettes.

The three-judge panel of the 5th District Court of Appeals said Judge Nicholas Byron didn't have the authority to reduce the appeal bond from $12 billion to $6 billion.

The appeals court will not enforce its ruling for 30 days while Byron reconsiders the case.

"The opinion is clear, straightforward and speaks for itself," said Joy Howell, a spokeswoman for Carr Korein Tillery, the Belleville, Ill., law firm representing the 1.1 million Illinois smokers in the lawsuit.

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As someone who started smoking at the age of 15, and smoked for 10 years (quitting cold turkey only when my pack-a-day habit left me feeling as though my heart and lungs were in the process of imploding), I applaud any effort to stick it to the tobacco companies.