State ex rel. Greitens v. American Tobacco Co.

In 1998, 52 U.S. states and territories entered into the Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) with tobacco manufacturers (PMs), which released the PMs from tobacco-related consumer protection and product liability lawsuits in return for the PMs’ agreement to make annual payments to the states in perpetuity. This dispute concerned the application of the Non-Participating Manufacturer Adjustment (NPM Adjustment), a provision in the MSA that reduces the amount the PMs must pay to states that failed diligently to enforce certain legislation during a relevant year. PMs, Missouri, and other states arbitrated the dispute. More than twenty states and the PMs entered into a partial settlement agreement, but Missouri and other states did not join the settlement. The arbitration panel found that Missouri was not diligent in enforcing its legislative enactment and that the NPM Adjustment applied. Missouri sought relief. The trial court overruled Missouri’s motion to compel the PMS to engage in a single-state arbitration with Missouri over another dispute regarding application of the NPM Adjustment in a subsequent year but modified the award as requested by Missouri. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the trial court correctly refused to compel single-state arbitration; and (2) the trial court did not err in modifying the panel’s award. View "State ex rel. Greitens v. American Tobacco Co." on Justia Law