North Carolina: Juul negotiates to drop $40 million lawsuit

E-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc., in which Altria is a shareholder, was sued for fueling a vaping epidemic among American teens. The settlement reached with North Carolina could set a precedent and is drawing attention from the Food and Drug Administration.

Like 13 other US states and the District of Columbia (Washington DC), North Carolina had been taking legal action against Juul, the leading US manufacturer of electronic cigarettes, since 2019.

The reasons given were to have knowingly targeted young people and adolescents, to have developed products designed for them and available in a wide range of flavoured and sweetened flavours, and to have invested significant advertising budgets on social networks, while minimising the dangers of these high-dose nicotine products.1Juul was notably accused of having contributed significantly to the surge in experimentation with e-cigarettes among American adolescents and young people in recent years.

A binding agreement, which has the force of law

The settlement agreement is the first of its kind between a state and an e-cigarette maker. Juul's $40 million payment over six years would fund prevention efforts, research on e-cigarettes and mystery shopping to ensure the ban on sales to minors is effective. The agreement also contains marketing and promotional restrictions, requiring the manufacturer to abandon any advertising that could reach people under the age of 21, including on social media. Juul products are now banned in North Carolina to people under the age of 21, including online; in stores, the products will have to be sold behind the counter and retailers will be required to have ID scanners to verify customers' ages. The company's records will eventually have to be made available to the public, as is the case in the cigarette trials and other cases where Juul Labs Inc. has been convicted.

Cascading complaints

The company is also the subject of more than 300 complaints, brought either by states or by individuals. Thirty-nine attorneys general joined forces in 2020 to coordinate their actions against Juul for deception and fraudulent practices [2]. Another complaint from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has also been filed since April 2020, concerning the conditions of the merger of Juul Labs Inc. with the Altria group in 2018[3].

Congratulated by tobacco control activists, North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein noted the symbolic nature of the decision in a longtime tobacco-producing state. The North Carolina settlement not only lends credence to lawsuits in other states, but also prompts many to call for federal legislation on e-cigarettes.

Matthew L. Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, took the opportunity to urge the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to limit nicotine levels in e-cigarettes and to act quickly on bringing e-cigarette laws into line with those for other tobacco products. He also called on the FDA to impose stricter regulations that ban all types of flavors for vaping products, with no exceptions for menthol.

A double-edged speech

In a statement, Juul said the decision is "consistent with our ongoing effort to reset our business and our relationships with our stakeholders, while continuing our fight against underage use and the development of harm reduction options for adult smokers." Using an argument that strongly recalls that of the cigarette companies, Juul claims to be targeting adults who want to reduce or stop smoking, while it is explicitly asked to stop targeting adolescents and young people[4].

Sales of Juul e-cigarettes have dropped sharply since the company stopped advertising on social media. Experimentation with e-cigarettes by high school students reportedly dropped from 28% to 20% between 2019 and 2020, according to a study by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.2] ; they had more than doubled between 2017 and 2019, going from 12% to 28%, at the time when Juul flooded social networks with advertisements[5]. These rapid changes are a reminder that young people and adolescents are more vulnerable than adults to advertising [6] and that this is never fortuitous.

Keywords: Juul, Electronic cigarettes, vaping, United States, youth ©Generation Without Tobacco

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[1] McGinley L, The Washington Post, Juul agrees to pay North Carolina $40 million to settle vaping charges. Published June 28, 2021, accessed June 29, 2021. [2] National Public Radio/AP, Juul Will Pay North Carolina $40 Million To Settle A Landmark Suit Over Teen Vaping. Published on June 28, 2021, consulted on June 29, 2021. [3] Le Figaro/AFP, E-cigarette: Juul pays $40 million to North Carolina to settle legal dispute. Published on June 28, 2021, accessed on June 29, 2021. [4] Génération Sans Tabac, How Juul Created a Teen Vape Epidemic. Published March 19, 2020, accessed June 29, 2021. [5] Myers M, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, North Carolina Settlement Shows Why FDA Must Reject Juul's Application to Continue Selling Menthol-Flavored and High-Nicotine E-Cigarettes. Published June 28, 2021, accessed June 29, 2021. [6] Stead, M., Hitchman, SC, Angus, K., Aleyan, S., Ford, A., MacKintosh, AM, Purves, R., Mitchell, D., Hammond, D., Fong, GT, Driezen, P., Reid, J., Craig, L., Chung-Hall J., Cummings, KM, Thrasher, JF, Cho YJ, Cowell, C., Coker, T., Bullock, S., Froguel, A., Vohra, J., Ecigarette marketing in the UK: evidence from adult and youth surveys and policy compliance studies. Cancer Research UK. 2021. National Committee Against Smoking |