4 Tobacco Firms Deny Talks

In a move to dispel speculation, the nation’s four largest tobacco companies said Tuesday they aren’t negotiating to settle liability lawsuits.

In a joint statement, Philip Morris Cos., RJR Nabisco Holdings Corp.’s R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., B.A.T. Industries’ Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. and Loews Corp.’s Lorillard Tobacco said they “have no intention of settling these or any other pending tobacco cases out of court.”

The companies said they issued the statement to counter speculation that arose after Richard Scruggs, a lawyer representing several states suing the tobacco industry, and Mississippi State Atty. Gen. Mike Moore made statements in interviews implying they might be negotiating settlements with the industry.

“No representatives acting on behalf of these four tobacco companies have undertaken any such activities, and Scruggs and Moore are well aware of that fact,” the companies said.

Officials at Richard Scruggs’ office weren’t immediately available for comment.

The $50-billion tobacco industry’s position on not settling its lawsuits out of court came into question when Miami-based Brooke Group Ltd. on March 13 announced that its Liggett Group Inc. agreed to settle suits with four states suing the industry and with the 67 law firms suing in a massive class-action suit in New Orleans.

That made Liggett, the maker of Eve and Chesterfield cigarettes, the first tobacco company ever to settle liability claims in more than 40 years of suits against the industry.

The four companies all said they had no intention of settling current claims. However, that still left open the issue of whether the companies might be negotiating a settlement that would include current and future claims.

Last week, RJR Nabisco Chief Executive Steven Goldstone further fueled speculation by saying the tobacco industry might consider settling suits under certain terms, one of which would be a U.S. government pledge of immunity from future lawsuits.