ST PAUL, Minn. — The State of Minnesota has hammered out a settlement with e-cigarette makers JUUL and Altria, effectively ending a groundbreaking trial one day before closing arguments were to be delivered.
Attorney General Keith Ellison announced the settlement Monday, saying terms of the deal will be made public in the coming days. The lawsuit accused JUUL and Altria of marketing their vaping products in a way that made them attractive to Minnesota teens, developing sleek devices and flavors that were appealing to youth. The state maintains that a generation of young people became addicted.
"In Minnesota, the health and safety of our children is of paramount importance. And yet, JUUL products exposed a whole new generation of kids to the addictive and dangerous drug nicotine," Ellison said in a released statement. "After three weeks of trial highlighting and bringing into the public record the actions that JUUL and Altria took that contributed to the youth vaping epidemic, we reached a settlement in the best interest of Minnesotans."
State prosecutors say Minnesota was experiencing its lowest level of teen tobacco use in decades until JUUL and other lesser manufacturers entered the market with its vaping products. The actual lawsuit was filed in 2019, and on March 28, 2023, Minnesota became the first state to go to trial with JUUL and Atria: More than a dozen other states reached an agreement with the companies before going to court.
JUUL reacted to the settlement Monday, saying it will allow them to renew its focus on using vaping technology to transition adult smokers from combustible cigarettes and reduce the harm of tobacco on more than 31 million U.S. smokers.
“Resolution of issues from the company’s past and its historical legal challenges has remained a critical priority to secure certainty for our future," reads the statement from JUUL. "While we appreciate the court and jury’s time, attention, and professionalism throughout the trial, we are pleased to have reached a settlement with the state and will work to finalize this agreement over the coming weeks. We have now settled with 48 states and territories, providing over $1 billion to participating states to further combat underage use and develop cessation programs."
Details of the settlement will be kept confidential until formal papers are publicly filed with the court, which is expected to occur in the next 30 days. At that time monetary damages and other elements of the deal will become public.
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