Vermont has recovered $8.3 million in civil penalties from R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company following a 2005 lawsuit saying the company made unsubstantiated advertising claims.
The attorney general's office sued the company for advertising its Eclipse cigarettes as a "risk reduction" product. Judge Dennis Pearson ruled in March 2010 that R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. had violated consumer protection law and another order by not having adequate scientific studies to back up its advertising claims that Eclipse might reduce smokers' risks of getting cancer.
Pearson ruled in June that Reynolds should pay civil penalties for the violations.
An additional $5.7 million is covering attorneys' fees and costs.
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