Court Backs Dismissal of Tribes’ Smoking Suits

A federal appeals court upheld the dismissal of a suit filed by American Indian tribes that claimed they were wrongfully excluded from the cigarette makers’ $246-billion settlement with 46 U.S. states.

The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with a lower court’s finding that the tribes had not shown an injury to justify their suit against Philip Morris Cos., R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc., British American Tobacco’s Brown & Williamson subsidiary and Loews Corp.’s Lorillard unit.

The suit, filed by 20 tribes, claims that Indian populations were counted when the state settlement amounts were determined in 1998, but the tribes were not awarded any funds. The lawsuit sought more than $1 billion in damages and a court order prohibiting the tobacco companies from distributing any settlement proceeds that should have gone to the tribes.

Shares of New York-based Philip Morris fell $1.09 to $43.90 on the New York Stock Exchange. Shares of R.J. Reynolds, based in Winston-Salem, N.C., fell $1.67 to $48.56 on the NYSE.