Philip Morris ordered to pay legal fees to Australia government News
Philip Morris ordered to pay legal fees to Australia government

The Permanent Court of Arbitration [official website] has published a decision [order, PDF] that Philip Morris must pay substantial legal fees to the Australian government for a failed suit the tobacco company brought concerning cigarette packaging laws. In 2011 Australia, the UK and other countries replaced [Guardian report] logos and distinctive coloring on cigarette packages with graphic health warnings. After a six-year legal battle fighting the new packaging regulations, Philip Morris lost its claim for damages. Philip Morris argued that Australia’s claim for costs related to arbitration was “unreasonable” as the country’s legal team primarily consisted of public servants. Australia contended that the amount requested was a small proportion of the amount of damages sought by Philip Morris in the initial suit. The exact amount rewarded was omitted from the order. In similar cases against the tobacco giant, the US and Canada claimed $4.5 million and $3 million respectively.

Cigarettes continue to be a serious health and legal issue around the world. In May 2016 the EU Court of Justice [official website] upheld [JURIST report] EU rules that will require health warnings to cover 65 percent of a cigarette pack. In June 2015 a judge for the Quebec Superior Court awarded over $15 billion [JURIST report] in damages to Quebec smokers in a case against tobacco companies JTI-Macdonald, Imperial Tobacco, and Rothmans, Benson & Hedges, making this the largest award for damages and the biggest class action lawsuit in Canada’s history. In May 2014 the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit [official website] upheld the dismissal [JURIST report] of a consolidated lawsuit brought against various tobacco companies. In August 2014 the World Health Organization (WHO) [official website]called for strict regulation [JURIST report] of electronic cigarettes, including a ban on the usage of the devices in public places and advertising targeting minors. In June 2014 the Supreme Administrative Court of Thailand approved a new regulation [JURIST report] requiring packs of cigarettes in the country to be 85 percent covered with graphic health warnings.

THIS DAY @ LAW

38 Santee Sioux hanged by US for rebellion

On December 26, 1862, 38 Santee Sioux men were hanged in a mass execution for their roles in a rebellion against US authorities in Minnesota which left hundreds dead and made refugees of some 40,000 white settlers. Government annuities promised under a treaty with the Sioux had failed to arrive on schedule and credit for purchases was not advanced in the meantime, threatening the tribe with starvation. The Santee Sioux Tribe's members were deported first to South Dakota and ultimately to Nebraska, where they remain today. Learn more about the 1862 Minnesota Sioux Rebellion.

Louis XVI put on trial during French Revolution

On December 26, 1792, Romain de Sèze, a defense attorney for deposed King Louis XVI, presented a defense of his client. The former King was on trial before a French Revolutionary court on thirty-three charges, including treason and other crimes against the state. He was convicted on January 15, 1793 executed by guillotine on the following January 21.