Juul, Altria Reach $90M Settlement With Investors Over Alleged Marketing to Teens

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Juul and Altria Investor Class Action Settlement Overview:

• Who: Juul and Altria faced a class action lawsuit from investors who alleged Securities Exchange Act violations.
• What: The investors claimed the companies misled them and others about Juul’s marketing to youth. The companies have agreed to pay $90 million to end the claims.
• Where: The class action is nationwide.

Juul and Altria, two companies accused of fueling the vaping epidemic among teenagers, have reached a $90 million class action settlement with investors who said the pair knowingly marketed to underage consumers. 

In a motion for preliminary approval filed Dec. 9 in a Virginia federal court, investors said they had made a deal with tobacco company Altria Group Inc. and vaping company Juul Labs Inc. to settle claims that the companies violated the Securities Exchange Act.  

In a memo to the court, the lead plaintiffs said this class action settlement is one of the largest ever made of its kind.

“The Settlement—which represents one of the largest recoveries ever achieved in a securities class action in Virginia and the Fourth Circuit and approximately seven times the median settlement value between 2018 and 2020—will bring to a close intense and hard-fought litigation,” the memo states. 

It also points out that the Juul class action lawsuit included four motions to dismiss, all of which were denied, and multiple mediation sessions.

Juul, Altria Class Action Settlement, Investor Claims

Anyone who bought Altria securities between Oct. 25, 2018, and April 1, 2020 could be eligible for compensation under the deal, with tens of thousands of members estimated to be in the Class. 

In the original Juul class action lawsuit filed in July 2020, investors alleged that when Altria acquired a 35 percent stake in Juul they were assured the company would stop marketing to youth smokers, however that did not happen.

According to the lawsuit, investors claimed they were harmed by false and misleading statements made by Altria Group Inc and Juul Labs Inc regarding marketing to underage consumers, their commitment to preventing youth usage of their products, and the health and safety of Juul’s products.

The misrepresentations caused the stock price of the companies to fall a number of times after investigations into Juul’s marketing were started by the government, the class action stated. 

In addition to the investors, federal regulators have alleged that the Altria Juul investment was meant to eliminate competition in the e-cigarette market by creating a collaboration between the top tobacco company and the top e-cigarette maker.

Another vape company has recently agreed to pay millions of dollars to end similar litigation accusing it of targeting youth with advertising. Eonsmoke, the maker of flavored vape pods compatible with Juul e-cigarettes, will pay the state of Massachusetts after its attorney general accused the company of orchestrating a social media campaign that put underage consumers in the crosshairs. 

Sign up to join a Juul class action lawsuit investigation here (links to paid advertising). 

The proposed investor class is represented by Steven J. Toll, Daniel S. Sommers and S. Douglas Bunch of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC, Jeremy A. Lieberman and Michael J. Wernke of Pomerantz LLP, Samuel H. Rudman, David A. Rosenfeld, Erin W. Boardman, Douglas R. Britton, Ellen Gusikoff Stewart, Kevin A. Lavelle, Matthew J. Balotta and Philip T. Merenda of Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP, and Brian Schall of The Schall Law Firm.

The Juul, Altria Investor Class Action Lawsuit is Klein v. Altria Group Inc. et al., Case No. 3:20-cv-00075, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:

• Juul Class Actions Lodged by Two More School Districts Claiming Co Misrepresents Safety of Its Vaping Devices, Targets Youth
• $15M Awarded in Lawsuit Over E-Cig Battery Explosion Injuries
• Juul Wants School Districts To Go First In MDL Bellwether Trials Concerning Vaping Device Claims
• More Plaintiffs, Including Minors and School Districts, Join Multidistrict Litigation Against Juul