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Attendant loses Anti-Tobacco court case

September 5, 6:12 PM ET

MIAMI (AP) - The six-member panel agreed Thursday that Suzette Janoff suffers from sinusitis, rhinitis, allergies and other ear, nose and throat problems, but concluded that her on-the-job exposure to smoke was not the cause.

"All the questions were answered in the medical records," said Anthony Upshaw, attorney for Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. "That's all it took."

Ronald S. Milstein, vice president and general counsel for Lorillard Tobacco Co., said Janoff suffered from pre-existing conditions that can cause sinusitis, her most serious illness.

Janoff, who worked for American Airlines from 1983 to 1996, and her attorneys said they were disappointed with the verdict reached after nine hours of deliberations spread over two days.

The trial grew out of a 1997 class-action settlement between four leading cigarette makers and nonsmoking flight attendants.

The settlement set up a $300 million foundation to study smoke-related illnesses and paved the way for a long series of compensatory damage trials. Punitive damages are not allowed.

Three previous trials on attendants' claims have ended with a $5.5 million verdict, a decision favoring tobacco and a mistrial. About 1,800 other claims are awaiting trial.

Philip Morris Vice President Bill Ohlemeyer called the jury's decision "the right verdict" based on the evidence. He said the majority of the other attendants' claims are similar and he expects more verdicts in favor of the industry.

Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Leslie Rothenberg conceded making mistakes by allowing the jury to consider whether Janoff and the airline were negligent.

Janoff's attorneys plan to file new motions with the trial judge but said they have not decided whether to appeal.

Neil Kodsi, attorney for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., said the verdict should send a message to others considering secondhand smoke claims that juries will scrutinize the medical evidence.

Janoff said she was exposed to more than 6,500 hours of secondhand smoke in airline cabins before a federal ban on in-flight smoking in 1990.

The tobacco industry blamed her sinus problems on allergies, and a doctor for the companies told jurors that the first of her two sinus surgeries was unnecessary and amounted to malpractice.

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