Tobacco companies lost another legal battle in Quebec after the appeal court sided with the provincial government in a ruling that opens the door province to sue tobacco companies to recover billions in healthcare costs related to smoking.
Nearly three months after a landmark ruling ordered three leading Canadian tobacco companies to pay $15.5 billion in moral and punitive damages to Quebec smokers, the Quebec Court of Appeal upheld a lower court ruling that found that while the province’s healthcare recovery legislation does deprive tobacco companies some traditional means of defence it does not affect their right to a fair trial.