MILWAUKEE (WKOW) — A law firm filed the first Wisconsin lawsuits against vaping companies over alleged illegal marketing to teens.
Cruegger Dickinson LLC announced Friday it has filed lawsuits in Wisconsin, Illinois, Florida, New Jersey and Washington on behalf of more than a dozen people who became addicted to JUUL vaping products as teenagers and were “exposed to the serious health risks those products cause in adolescents.”
Two other law firms are representing plaintiffs in the case, according to a news release sent to 27 News.
“According to the lawsuit – the first filed in Wisconsin in the wake of the rising public health crisis in here and across the country that has landed teens in emergency rooms with severe pulmonary and respiratory illnesses – JUUL and its 35% owner Altria (formerly Phillip Morris) engaged in a false and deceptive marketing campaign aimed directly at teens,” the press release said.
The case alleges Juul and Altria took advantage of the fact that the vaping industry was virtually unregulated until recently, and the companies launched a social media campaign directed toward teens.
“Having witnessed the tragic results that happen when companies widely promote an addictive product as safe, our firm felt compelled to enter the fight to prevent yet another public health tragedy,” said Erin Dickinson, one of the lead lawyers in the case.
Cruegger Dickinson LLC is also representing several Wisconsin counties in their fight against the opioid crisis.
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