On September 28, 2004, the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that California anti-smoking advertisements do not violate the First Amendment rights of tobacco companies. The case, RJ Reynolds Tobacco Co. v. Shewry, addressed the issue of whether the graphic anti-smoking campaign violated the free speech of tobacco companies. The court rejected arguments from RJ Reynolds and Lorillard Tobacco Co. that the advertisements were unfair because the tobacco companies were compelled to pay for part of the campaign through excise taxes. Several tobacco companies filed a similar First Amendment challenge to federal smoking regulations in August 2009.

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