Word: philip
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Look who's talking now. For four decades, tobacco giants Philip Morris (Marlboro) and R.J. Reynolds (Camel) have hotly denied that cigarettes cause illness and have successfully stubbed out every claim for damages brought against them. But the danger of suffocation from mushrooming lawsuits, rising political hostility and shareholder agitation have finally compelled the two companies to discuss a settlement. It was disclosed last week that the tobacco giants had begun complex negotiations with state attorneys general, private lawyers and antismoking advocates...
When they did, Philip Morris boss Geoffrey Bible and RJR chief Steven Goldstone, who attended the first meeting held near Washington on April 3, put on the table some remarkable concessions: sweeping curbs on sales and marketing practices, and the payment of hundreds of billions of dollars in compensation. But in exchange, the two companies sought nothing less than blanket immunity from all present and future liability complaints...
...industry has the wherewithal to raise $300 billion, the highest figure yet floated, payable over 25 years, to compensate plaintiffs for smoking-related ailments. Together, market leader Philip Morris and No. 2 Reynolds command a 72% share of the $45 billion U.S. tobacco industry. Cynics noted that demand for cigarettes is inelastic--the companies would just force nicotine junkies to cough up an additional 25 cents a pack, which now averages $1.80. The industry would also scrap its outdoor advertising and remove human and human-like figures from remaining ads, thereby laying to rest the images of the Marlboro...
Shift supervisor Albert Philip of University Operations Services said that there was an "unconfirmed report" that a "lighted cigarette" started the fire...
...Kadlec: "The tobacco industry knows it could pay for this entire settlement by just increasing prices. It wouldn't affect their current operations at all. It would finally give them immunity to lawsuits, and stocks will soar." In fact, the news received a warm reception on Wall Street, with Philip Morris up 4 1/4 and RJ Reynolds up 3 1/4. Still, a number of of possibly insurmountable hurdles remain. For one thing, any deal that would shield cigarette companies from future litigation would require an act of Congress. Tobacco firms and plaintiffs also reportedly differ on the total compensation...