Source: Wire: Reuters
Pubdate:  Sun, 19 Oct 1997

UK doctors mull lawsuits in war on tobacco firms

LONDON (Reuters)  The British Medical Association said Wednesday it might
follow the lead taken by the United States and explore possible
compensation from tobacco firms to cover treatment of smokingrelated
diseases.

``We are looking today at whether we should be taking more risks in the
area of antitobacco litigation,'' John Chisolm of the BMA, the main
professional body for Britain's doctors, told a news conference.

The BMA is seeking to widen debate about whether Britain should follow the
example of U.S. states and individuals who have spearheaded antitobacco
legal battles in the last three years.

U.S. tobacco firms reached a landmark settlement of $368.6 billion four
months ago and admitted that their product was addictive.

``The United States is several years ahead of us in using litigation to
attack the tobacco industry,'' Chisolm told reporters.

British health bodies should consider ``changing the climate in the U.K.''
and turning public anger against the tobacco industry, he said.

The BMA said it was asking whether it should encourage tobacco litigation
by those harmed by smoking and whether criminal proceedings, or even
corporate manslaughter charges, should be considered.

The BMA staged the meeting, which it said was the first of its kind in
Britain, in conjunction with an antismoking lobby group and two U.S. legal
experts with experience of antitobacco lawsuits.

Bill O'Neill, a second BMA spokesman, said the tobacco industry had
implemented a sustained and sophisticated legal and public relations
strategy to avoid liability for smokingrelated diseases.

``Lawyers and scientists in the pocket of the industry deliberately steered
others away from particular research avenues. The record must be set
straight,'' he said.

The tobacco industry's own body, the Tobacco Advisory Council, was
unavailable for comment.