Untitled Tobacco Institute memo about addiction issue

Untitled memo about addiction issue

This untitled 1980 Tobacco Institute memo from Paul Knopick to William Kloepfer, both of the Institute, was used as a trial exhibit in cases against the tobacco industry Minnesota, Missouri, Florida, Texas and Washington state. In it, Knopick points out that if the industry ever admitted publicly that cigarettes are addictive, their defense of "free choice" in liability suits would disappear.

"...[The tobacco industry law firm of] Shook, Hardy [and Bacon] reminds us...that the entire matter of addiction is the most potent weapon a prosecuting attorney can have in a lung cancer/cigarette case. We can't defend continued smoking as 'free choice' if the person was 'addicted'"

Author KNOPICK P # TI  Date  19800909 Type MEMO Bates TIMN0107822/7823 Collection Tobacco Institute Other Num. T083434-T083435 Pages 2 URL: http://legacy.library.ucsf.edu/tid/yol92f00