Court Dismissed Challenge to San Diego County Tobacco Flavor Sales Ban

In late March, Judge Sammartino of the U.S. District Court of Southern California dismissed tobacco industry challenges to San Diego local ordinances that banned the sale of flavored tobacco products.  San Diego county recently passed legislation banning the sale of flavored tobacco products.  Predictably, the tobacco industry sued claiming the product ban amounted to a products standard and that only the Food and Drug Administration had the authority to set product standards.  Judge Sammartino rejected the industry claims and dismissed all challenges to the San Diego flavor ban.  The tobacco industry is expected to l appeal the decision.

Several other communities have passed similar laws banning the sales of flavored tobacco products, which has led to several court cases where the tobacco industry is seeking to block the implementation of the flavored tobacco sales ban.  The ATS is closely monitoring these court battles and will likely file amici briefs in selected cases to support bans on flavored tobacco sales.