$23.8M Juul settlement resolves city of Chicago lawsuit over vaping product sales to minors

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Juul vaping settlement overview: 

• Who: Juul Labs has reached a $23.8 million settlement with the city of Chicago.
• Why: The settlement resolves claims that the e-cigarette manufacturer marketed its products to underage people.
• Where: The Juul vaping settlement was filed in an Illinois county court.

E-cigarette maker Juul Labs has agreed to pay a $23.8 million settlement to the city of Chicago to end claims the company marketed its vaping products to underage users.

The settlement between Juul Labs and the city of Chicago was filed Feb. 28 in an Illinois county court. The agreement resolves a lawsuit brought by the city in May 2020 that alleged JUUL violated city laws by engaging in a “widespread marketing campaign” that targeted minors, the city said in a March 10 press release. 

According to the lawsuit, Juul sold its products without implementing strict age verification requirements. 

“JUUL appealed to youth with their colorful, playful media and social media marketing and used high nicotine contents to fuel ongoing use,” the city said. 

“Four years after JUUL’s release, over a quarter of US 10th and 12th graders were using JUUL nationally, and in Chicago, youth vaping had doubled.” 

The city said the harms to Chicago youths from using the products include addiction to nicotine, inhalation of toxic chemicals, exposure to illicit drugs, an increased risk of asthma attacks and mental health concerns such as depression and anxiety. 

With the settlement funds, the city said it will take steps to prevent and reduce youth vaping through education, local policies, parent and teacher supports, cessation supports, improvements in data, and community engagement and outreach initiatives.

Juul set to make first multimillion-dollar payments to city

Under the settlement, Juul has agreed to pay the city $2.8 million within a month of the agreement’s execution. 

Later this year, Juul is expected to make another $21 million payment, plus up to $750,000 in additional, court-awarded payments, the City of Chicago said.

In September 2022, Juul agreed to pay $438.5 million to resolve an investigation into the e-cigarette company’s sales and marketing practices, in which Juul was accused of targeting underage youth with marketing campaigns for its e-cigarette devices.

What do you think of Juul’s settlement with the city of Chicago? Let us know in the comments!

The city is represented by Stephen J. Kane of the Chicago Department of Law. 

The Juul Chicago settlement is City of Chicago v. Juul Labs Inc., et al. Case No. 2020CH04183, in the Circuit Court of Cook County.

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