ZYN class action alleges nicotine pouch product deceptively marketed as healthy

ZYN teens class action lawsuit overview: 

• Who: An anonymous plaintiff filed a class action lawsuit Philip Morris International Inc. and Swedish Match North America LLC, the creator of ZYN nicotine pouches and who was acquired by Philip Morris in 2022.  
• Why: Doe claims Philip Morris deceptively marketed to teens and other consumers that the ZYN Nicotine Pouches were healthy and a nicotine-cessation device. 
• Where: The class action lawsuit was filed in California federal court. 

Philip Morris deceptively marketed and promoted to teens and others that ZYN nicotine pouches were healthy and a nicotine-cessation device, a new ZYN class action lawsuit alleges. 

A plaintiff using the name John Doe claims Philip Morris, despite marketing to the contrary, was aware the ZYN product had no health benefits, was not a proven or authorized cessation device and that using it would “merely lead to nicotine addiction.” 

The ZYN class action also claims Philip Morris intentionally targeted the teen and youth demographic; the lawsuit says internal documents of an affiliate to the company argued “the importance of the youth and young adult market to the company’s success.” 

Doe argues ZYN is offered in flavors such as mint, menthol, citrus and coffee, and produced so that it can be used “almost anywhere, including in school or in front of parents, without others noticing.” 

“By creating a product that could be used almost anywhere, and at any time of day, Defendants promoted and pushed nicotine addiction on unsuspecting youth and young adults,” the ZYN class action states. 

Plaintiff wants to represent nationwide, California classes of ZYN users 

Doe wants to represent a nationwide class and California subclass of individuals who used oral nicotine pouches produced and manufactured by Philip Morris and marketed and sold under the brand name ZYN, in addition to a nationwide and California subclass of persons under the age of 18. 

The ZYN teens class action lawsuit claims Philip Morris is guilty of unjust enrichment, common law fraud and breach of the implied warranty of merchantability, and of violating California’s Consumer Legal Remedies Act, False Advertising Law and Unfair Competition Law. 

The plaintiff demands a jury trial and requests injunctive and declaratory relief and an award of compensatory and punitive damages for themself and all class members. 

Last month, a California federal judge preliminarily approved a $45 million settlement between Altria Group and a class of consumers who claimed they had paid more for Juul e-cigarettes than they would have if they had known just how unsafe they were. 

Have you used a ZYN nicotine pouch? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiff is represented by L. Timothy Fisher and Brittany S. Scott of Bursor & Fisher, P.A. 

The ZYN teens class action lawsuit is Doe v. Philip Morris International Inc., et al., Case No. 2:24-at-00393, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California.

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