Nicaragua Plans Suit Against Tobacco Cos.

The government of Nicaragua plans to file a lawsuit Thursday against tobacco companies in a U.S. court to recover the cost of treating sick smokers, a law firm representing the Central American country said in a statement. Nicaragua would become the second country in the region to file suit after Guatemala, which used the same law firm, Fleming, Hovenkamp & Grayson of Houston, to lodge a similar suit in May. D’Lisa Simmons, a spokeswoman for the law firm, could not provide the details of the lawsuit, including the potential defendants, damages or venue, until the suit is filed. “Nicaragua is still working on calculating the damages,” said Simmons. “This suit, however, would most likely include the same defendants as the recently settled [U.S. state attorneys general] cases.”