Tag: Juul Labs

  • U.S. Appeals Court Delays FDA’s Ban on Juul

    U.S. Appeals Court Delays FDA’s Ban on Juul

    Credit: Tanasin

    A federal appeals court today granted Juul Labs Inc. a temporary stay of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s order for the vaping company to pull its e-cigarettes off the U.S. market.

    “The purpose of this administrative stay is to give the court sufficient opportunity to consider petitioner’s forthcoming emergency motion for stay pending court review and should not be construed in any way as a ruling on the merits of that motion,” the court wrote.

    The e-cigarette maker had earlier asked the court to pause what it calls an “extraordinary and unlawful action by the regulatory agency that would require it to immediately halt its business.

    The company filed an emergency motion with the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington as it prepares to appeal the FDA´s decision.

    Juul said that the FDA cannot argue that there was a “critical and urgent public interest” in immediately removing its products from the market when the agency allowed them to be sold during its review.

    The company noted that the FDA denied its application while authorizing those submitted by competitors with similar products.

    The order sets a briefing schedule of June 27 for the petitioner’s emergency motion; July 7 for the respondent’s response, and July 12 for the reply.

    The request for an emergency stay while waiting to file an appeal was expected.

    “We respectfully disagree with the FDA’s findings … intend to seek a stay and are exploring all of our options under the FDA’s regulations and the law, including appealing the decision and engaging with our regulator,” said Joe Murillo, chief regulatory officer at Juul Labs, said in a statement. “We remain committed to doing all in our power to continue serving the millions of American adult smokers who have successfully used our products to transition away from combustible cigarettes, which remain available on market shelves nationwide.”

    The marketing denial order, which concerns the FDA’s analysis of Juul products has not been released to the public. “Any portion of the record that was placed under seal . . . before an agency remains under seal in this court unless otherwise ordered,” the emergency motion states.

  • Juul Granted Emergency Stay of FDA Order

    Juul Granted Emergency Stay of FDA Order

    Photo: steheap

    Court Grants Juul Emergency Stay of FDA Order

    Juul Labs received an emergency stay of the Food and Drug Administration’s order for the vaping company to pull its e-cigarettes off the U.S. market.

    The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on June 24 granted Juul’s request to delay the FDA’s ban. The temporary stay gives the court time to hear arguments and wasn’t a ruling on the merits of the case, the judges wrote.

    In its court filing, Juul argued that the FDA’s order was extraordinary and unlawful and it would suffer significant irreparable harm without a stay, according to The Wall Street Journal.

    Juul said that the requirement to immediately remove all Juul products from U.S. stores was a departure from the agency’s practices, which typically have a transitional period.

    The e-cigarette maker also questioned the agency’s handling of the announcement, noting The Wall Street Journal reported on the ban a day before it was announced.

    “Regulation through leaks and press releases is no way to handle agency action, much less to order a company to cease essentially all business operations,” Juul said in the court filing.

    Former FDA Center for Products Director Mitch Zeller said that Juul’s e-cigarettes were judged solely on the strength of the company’s application. Political pressure to ban Juul didn’t influence the ruling, nor did Juul’s past actions, he said. “This was a scientific review conducted by subject-matter experts,” he said. “That’s the way the system is supposed to work.”

    In a statement, Juul Labs it was exploring all its options under the FDA’s regulations and the law.

    “We respectfully disagree with the FDA’s findings and decision and continue to believe we have provided sufficient information and data based on high-quality research to address all issues raised by the agency,” said Juul Labs Chief Regulatory Officer Joe Murillo.

    “In our applications, which we submitted over two years ago, we believe that we appropriately characterized the toxicological profile of Juul products, including comparisons to combustible cigarettes and other vapor products, and believe this data, along with the totality of the evidence, meets the statutory standard of being “appropriate for the protection of the public health.”

    “We remain committed to doing all in our power to continue serving the millions of American adult smokers who have successfully used our products to transition away from combustible cigarettes, which remain available on market shelves nationwide.”

    Among other options, Juul is reportedly exploring a bankruptcy filing if the company is unable to get relief from the government’s ban, reports The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter.

  • Juul Requests Stay of FDA Order

    Juul Requests Stay of FDA Order

    Photo: steheap

    Juul Labs today asked a federal appeals court to temporarily block the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s marketing denial order until it can petition the court for an emergency review.

    In its filing, Juul said the FDA’s order was extraordinary and unlawful and it would suffer significant irreparable harm without a stay.

    On June 23, the regulatory agency ordered Juul Labs to remove its products from the market, saying the e-cigarette company had provided insufficient evidence in its premarket tobacco product application to demonstrate that its products are “appropriate for the protection of public health.”

    In particular, the FDA noted that its concerns about genotoxicity and potentially harmful chemicals leaching from the Juul Labs’ proprietary e-liquid pods had not been adequately addressed.

    “We respectfully disagree with the FDA’s findings and decision and continue to believe we have provided sufficient information and data based on high-quality research to address all issues raised by the agency,” said Joe Murillo, chief regulatory officer at Juul Labs, in a statement.

    We respectfully disagree with the FDA’s findings and decision and continue to believe we have provided sufficient information and data based on high-quality research to address all issues raised by the agency.

    “In our applications, which we submitted over two years ago, we believe that we appropriately characterized the toxicological profile of Juul products, including comparisons to combustible cigarettes and other vapor products, and believe this data, along with the totality of the evidence, meets the statutory standard of being “appropriate for the protection of the public health.”

    In its court filing, Juul said the FDA’s decision followed “immense political pressure from Congress once it became politically convenient to blame [Juul] for youth vaping, even though several of its competitors now have a larger market share and much higher underage-use rates,” according to The Wall Street Journal.

    Juul said that the FDA’s order to immediately remove all Juul products from U.S. stores was a departure from the agency’s practices, which typically have a transitional period. The e-cigarette maker also questioned the agency’s handling of the announcement, pointing to the fact that the order had reported in the press before it was officially announced.

    “Regulation through leaks and press releases is no way to handle agency action, much less to order a company to cease essentially all business operations,” Juul said in the court filing.

    In a press note, Juul Labs said it is exploring all of its options under the FDA’s regulations and the law. “We remain committed to doing all in our power to continue serving the millions of American adult smokers who have successfully used our products to transition away from combustible cigarettes, which remain available on market shelves nationwide,” the company wrote.







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    Meanwhile, the announcement that Juul products must come off the market triggered a run on stores, according to various news outlets, including Bloomberg. “Gonna clear the shelves and hoard ’em like our incandescent bulbs!” one user wrote on Twitter following the news.

  • It’s Official: FDA Denies Juul U.S. Market Access

    It’s Official: FDA Denies Juul U.S. Market Access

    Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration confirmed what many had already been anticipating: Juul Labs must remove all currently marketed Juul products from the U.S. market.

    “Today’s action is further progress on the FDA’s commitment to ensuring that all e-cigarette and electronic nicotine delivery system products currently being marketed to consumers meet our public health standards,” said FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf. “The agency has dedicated significant resources to review products from the companies that account for most of the U.S. market. We recognize these make up a significant part of the available products and many have played a disproportionate role in the rise in youth vaping.”

    These marketing denial orders (MDO) pertain only to the commercial distribution, importation and retail sales of these products, and do not restrict individual consumer possession or use—the FDA cannot and will not enforce against individual consumer possession or use of Juul products or any other tobacco products.

    “We respectfully disagree with the FDA’s findings … intend to seek a stay and are exploring all of our options under the FDA’s regulations and the law, including appealing the decision and engaging with our regulator,” said Joe Murillo, chief regulatory officer at Juul Labs, said in a statement. “We remain committed to doing all in our power to continue serving the millions of American adult smokers who have successfully used our products to transition away from combustible cigarettes, which remain available on market shelves nationwide.”

    After reviewing the company’s premarket tobacco product applications, the FDA determined that the applications lacked sufficient evidence regarding the toxicological profile of the products to demonstrate that marketing of the products would be appropriate for the protection of the public health.

    In particular, some of the company’s study findings raised concerns due to insufficient and conflicting data—including regarding genotoxicity and potentially harmful chemicals leaching from the company’s proprietary e-liquid pods—that have not been adequately addressed and precluded the FDA from completing a full toxicological risk assessment of the products named in the company’s applications.

    Matthew L. Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, called the FDA decision “the most significant action the FDA has taken to reverse the youth e-cigarette epidemic. Juul, more than any other product or company, has been responsible for creating and fueling the youth e-cigarette epidemic.”

    The FDA says that, to date, it has not received clinical information to suggest an immediate hazard associated with the use of the Juul device or Juul pods. However, the MDOs issued today reflect FDA’s determination that there is insufficient evidence to assess the potential toxicological risks of using the Juul products.

    “There is also no way to know the potential harms from using other authorized or unauthorized third-party e-liquid pods with the Juul device or using Juul pods with a non-Juul device,” the agency wrote in a statement.

    “The FDA is tasked with ensuring that tobacco products sold in this country meet the standard set by the law, but the responsibility to demonstrate that a product meets those standards ultimately falls on the shoulders of the company,” said Michele Mital, acting director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products. “As with all manufacturers, Juul had the opportunity to provide evidence demonstrating that the marketing of their products meets these standards. However, the company did not provide that evidence and instead left us with significant questions. Without the data needed to determine relevant health risks, the FDA is issuing these marketing denial orders.”

    Gregory Conley, president of the American Vaping Association, asserted on Twitter that the Juul decisions were “manufactured” and “complete nonsense.”

    Andrew Bagley is the owner of the Illuminati Smoke Shop in Columbia, South Carolina, and says even with the popularity of Juul, he doesn’t have concerns about the ban’s effect on sales, reports News19.

    “I’m not concerned,” he said. “We have quite a few other vape products that are PMTA approved, which just means at this point we are legally allowed to sell them and Juuls were a very small percent of our sales, it’s not that big of a deal.”

  • ‘BAT key beneficiary of Juul MDO’

    ‘BAT key beneficiary of Juul MDO’

    Photo: BAT

    The removal of Juul products from the U.S. market would boost the prospects of British American Tobacco, create opportunities for Philip Morris International but represent a problem for Altria Group, according to Morgan Stanley.

    In a letter to investors, the financial institution evaluated the impact of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s leaked plans to deny Juul Labs’ premarket tobacco product application (PMTA). While the FDA has not issued a formal statement yet, shares in Altria Group were down more than 9 percent in the immediate wake of the news. Altria owns about a third of Juul Labs.

    According to Morgan Stanley, Juul is Altria’s only exposure to the growing vapor category. While a Juul marketing denial order (MDO) would give Altria an opportunity to terminate its noncompete agreement with Philip Morris International, allowing it to step-up its vapor product research and development or acquire vapor technology, the company would not be coming from a position of negotiating leverage, according to the investment bank.

    “In addition, there are few larger scale independent e-vapor assets on the market,” wrote Morgan Stanley.

    The investment bank believes that removing market leader Juul from U.S. store shelves would create opportunities for other products, such as PMI’s IQOS heat-not-burn device, which has already received PMTA approval.

    The key beneficiary of a Juul MDO, however, would be British American Tobacco, according to Morgan Stanley.

    Several of the company’s products have already received PMTA authorizations, the investment bank points out. Though its Vuse brands, BAT recently overtook Juul as the leading U.S. e-cigarette player with a market share of more than 33 percent. The company has gained significant momentum in the category over the past 24 months and a Juul MDO could lead to further BAT market share gains, according to Morgan Stanley.

  • Juul Expected to be Pulled From Market Soon

    Juul Expected to be Pulled From Market Soon

    Let the shock settle in. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is preparing to order Juul Labs to take its e-cigarettes off the market in the United States, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

    Todd Cecil, deputy director for the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products’ Office of Science, told Vapor Voice during the Next Generation Nicotine Delivery seminar in Miami that he could not make a comment on the Juul decision until the FDA formerly issues a marketing denial order (MDO).

    The news sent Altria’s stock (MO) on a massive drop, falling more than 10 percent once the news broke.

    Wells Fargo analyst Bonnie Herzog wrote in an email that while the news comes as a bit of a surprise, she doesn’t believe all is lost for Altria and the company has several options it can pursue, adding that the sell-off today is overdone with the stock having lost an estimated $7 billion of market capital.

    “First, assuming the FDA does in fact issue an MDO for Juul, we believe the impact is far from certain given Juul’s likely options to appeal or challenge it (via a court decision similar to Kaival Brands’ approach for Bidi Vapor Sticks and IMB’s use of the appeals process for myblu), revise its [premarket tobacco product application] PMTA application, or sue the FDA altogether,” wrote Herzog. “Also, with no detail yet on the FDA’s rationale, it is tough to know how the agency is thinking about an MDO on Juul in the context of its broader efforts to encourage adult smokers to quit and/or move down the continuum of risk to less harmful alternatives (e.g., e-vapor, heat-not-burn, oral nicotine pouches, etc) especially given Juul’s critical leadership in e-cigs.

    “While it is unclear how the FDA is thinking about the remaining PMTAs that are pending (especially the popular VUSE Alto line), we have a hard time imagining the FDA would categorically remove highly popular e-cig brands without ensuring a suitable off-ramp for users (that isn’t back to combustible cigs).”

    It is expected that Juul will receive the MDO in a response to its PMTA because of its product’s potential to appeal to youth. The company has also seen a slump in sales recently, and has been taken over by RJ Reynolds Vapor Company’s Vuse brand e-cigarette in Nielsen rankings for the last two quarters.

    “We expect the company to appeal, with the products remaining on the market,” Vivien Azer, managing director for cannabis, consumer beverages and tobacco at Cowen Inc., New York, said in a research note.

    George Cassels-Smith, CEO of Tobacco Technologies, says Juul receiving an MDO is ridiculous. “For a company that has that has been a standard in this industry and has some of the highest quality products on the market, its shocking,” he said. “The company has tried hard to move past its early issues of appealing to youth. This isn’t appropriate for the protection of public health and it isn’t good for the industry. It hurts adult smokers because Juul is a product that is successful in helping smokers switch.”

    The decision is likely celebrated by some anti-nicotine groups who say Juul is the cause of the rise in teen vaping. That rise has also declined dramatically over the last 2-3 years. Recently, Juul Labs also settled several lawsuits related to youth marketing. Juul Labs — until recently the market leader in e-cigarette product sales — admitted to no wrongdoing in any of its settlements.

    Tony Abboud, executive director of the Vapor Technology Association (VTA) said that he was surprised by the news because Juul was always expected to get an approval order.

    “The reported denial of Juul’s PMTA application is stunning. While the company has certainly been at the epicenter of conflict, the amount of rigorous, peer reviewed science supporting their products’ ability to help smokers quit, raises serious questions about the FDA’s subjective balancing test, and whether public pressure campaigns will steer science policy,” said Abboud.

    Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) strongly condemned the decision. Tim Andrews, ATR’s director of consumer issues, said the Juul MDO will devastate public health across the country, and lead to easily preventable deaths.

    “Juul’s reduced risk tobacco alternatives are critical tools of smoking cessation that have been proven to help cigarette smokers across the U.S. save their lives through transitioning away from deadly combustible tobacco,” he said. ““This is a decision grounded in ideology, not science. It is a decision that will cause countless deaths that could have otherwise been prevented. For the sake of public health, it is a decision we hope will be overturned in the courts on appeal.”

    In 2018, Altria spent nearly $13 billion taking a 35 percent stake in Juul. The company has taken non-cash charges on the investment as regulatory scrutiny of Juul and its marketing practices have impacted sales. As of March 31, Altria said the estimated fair value of its investment in Juul was $1.6 billion.

    In 2019, Juul Labs announced it was suspending its print, broadcast and online advertising in the United States. That same year it halted the sale of its fruit and dessert flavors — including mango, creme brulee and cucumber — that were seen as a significant lure for teen users. The FDA also recently instituted a proposed rule to place a ban on menthol combustible cigarettes and flavored cigars. The menthol ban will not yet cover next-generation tobacco products, such as e-cigarettes, but the FDA has the authority to include them if it sees fit.

    Juul Labs submitted its PMTAs in July 2020. At the time, the company said its submission included comprehensive scientific evidence for the Juul device and Juul pods in Virginia Tobacco and Menthol flavors at nicotine concentrations of 5.0 percent and 3.0 percent, as well as information on its data-driven measures to address underage use of its products.

    Juul will not join NJOY as the only FDA-approved closed system, pod-style vaping device. The FDA is expected to make decisions on additional vaping brands that submitted timely PMTAs soon.

    Now that at the FDA has approved a quality vaping product in Njoy, many tobacco harm reduction groups are hoping the FDA publicly clarifies that vaping is a less risky alternative to smoking combustible. A recent Rutgers University study found that more than 60 percent of all doctors incorrectly believe all tobacco products are equally harmful, making them less likely to recommend e-cigarettes for people trying to quit smoking.

  • Senator Durbin Continues Cries to FDA Over PMTAs

    Senator Durbin Continues Cries to FDA Over PMTAs

    Dick Durbin
    Credit: Durbin.gov

    U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin today met virtually with six public health organizations regarding what he calls a failure of the U.S Food and Drug Administration to fulfill its obligation to regulate e-cigarettes under the Tobacco Control Act.

    In 2019, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland mandated that FDA finalize its premarket tobacco product applications under review by September 9, 2021.

    As FDA has delayed for more than nine months past that deadline on finalizing its reviews.

    During his meeting with these health groups, Durbin discussed his recent statement for FDA Commissioner Robert Califf to “immediately clear the market of unauthorized, kid-friendly e-cigarettes or step aside,” according to River Bender.

    “We know that kids are getting hooked on these flavored e-cigarettes that are specifically targeted to children, like JUUL. Yet FDA has decided to cower to Big Tobacco and ignore the addiction of children as the agency wrings its hands over e-cigarette applications,” said Durbin.

    “I’m grateful for the leadership of these health organizations, and together, we will do our best to ensure there is responsible, active leadership at FDA that will take the issue of nicotine addiction seriously.”

  • FDA Hands Court PMTA Status Report for Market Leaders

    FDA Hands Court PMTA Status Report for Market Leaders

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has submitted a status report for products that currently have a premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) under review. The regulatory agency states that it expects to have resolved 63 percent of the applications set out in its original priority by June 30, 2022, and 72 percent of the applications in its original priority set by the end of this year. However, the agency does not expect to complete its review of timely submitted applications until June, 2023.

    “The FDA’s progress largely reflects the review priorities that the agency established in 2020, when review began. Given the large influx of concurrent applications, the FDA prioritized review of applications from manufacturers with the greatest market share at the time because decisions on those applications were expected to have the greatest impact on public health,” the report states. “As a result, the FDA allocated significant resources to review applications from the five companies whose brands represented over 95 percent of the e-cigarette market at that time: Fontem (blu), JUUL, Logic, NJOY, and R.J. Reynolds (Vuse).”

    During a House subcommittee meeting after the release of the report, the head of the FDA said the agency needs more resources to speed up its review of e-cigarettes and is avoiding making hasty decisions that could incite lawsuits from the industry.

    “This is an industry that has amazing capabilities on the legal front,” FDA Commissioner Robert Califf said. “If we make one single error in the process, we can be set back for years in these applications.”

    In the order requiring the FDA to submit status reports, the Maryland court stated that covered applications are limited to applications for products that are sold under the brand names JUUL, Vuse, NJOY, Logic, Blu, SMOK, Suorin or Puff Bar. Additionally, any product with a reach of 2 percent or more of total “Retail Dollar Sales” in Nielsen’s Total E-Cig Market & Players or Disposable E-Cig Market & Players’ reports.

    To determine which applications are for products sold under the listed brand names, the FDA used its internal PMTA database, which organizes applications by manufacturer, according to the agency. The FDA searched its database for the brand names to identify the manufacturers related to each relevant brand name and then searched its database to identify applications submitted by the manufacturers.

    The FDA stated that it had conferred with the plaintiffs in the case who agreed that only one brand beyond those listed meets the 2 percent threshold. That brand was not identified. Of those applications the FDA deems requiring status reports, the agency stated that it had identified 240 covered applications. The agency estimates that its best forecast, based on current information, the FDA will take action on:

    • 51% of covered applications by June 30, 2022;
    • 52% of covered applications by September 30, 2022;
    • 56% of covered applications by December 31, 2022;
    • 56% of covered applications by March 31, 2023; and
    • 100% of covered applications by June 30, 2023.

    The agency also states that not every covered application has an equal potential impact on the public health. For example, more than 25 percent of the covered applications are for products not currently on the market.

    The FDA identified two applications for products sold under the relevant brand names where the applicant stated that the products were not on the market as of August 8, 2016. The FDA also identified three other applications for products sold under the relevant brand names where the applicant did not state whether the products were on the market as of August 8, 2016. The FDA has not included information about these five applications in the current status report.

    “Also, some e-cigarette devices consist of a small number of components, resulting in a small number of individual product applications for the entire system. A disposable prefilled device, for example, could constitute a single product, with one application. Other e- cigarette devices, by contrast, consist of many components, with separate tanks, coils, tubes, and pods, resulting in dozens of separate product applications for a single system,” the status report states. “Of the covered applications that the FDA anticipates will remain to be resolved beyond the end of 2022, more than half are for components of a limited number of e-cigarette device systems representing under 2.5 percent of the e-cigarette market. The FDA has made and will continue to make significant progress in reviewing and resolving applications for e-cigarette products to achieve the greatest impact on public health.”

    The agency stated that it will file another status report by July 29, 2022, that will include any revisions to the estimates disclosed in the first report.

    This story will be updated throughout the day.

  • Reynold’s Vuse Continues to Build Market Lead Over Juul

    Reynold’s Vuse Continues to Build Market Lead Over Juul

    The two weeks ended April 9, 2022, was the first time Vuse surpassed Juul to become the No.1 e-cigarette brand in the U.S., according to Nielsen. The company had a market share of 35 percent, driven by the Vuse Alto, which represents more than 90 percent of Vuse’s 2021 revenues in the U.S. Vuse has been narrowing the gap with Juul since Dec. 2021.

    Several analysts reported on May 3 that Vuse had barely edged past Juul in the Nielsen analysis of convenience store data that covers the four-week period ending April 23. Vuse was at a 34.8 percent market share, while Juul was at 34.4 percent.

    It was the first time Vuse held the top market share in the Nielsen report since November 2017. However, for the past 52 weeks, Juul remains ahead 36.6 percent to 30.5 percent.

    By comparison, Juul held a 74.6 percent U.S. e-cig market share as recently as May 2019, which is when a series of regulatory actions led to product-reduction concessions by Juul Labs. In the Neilsen report released May 3, NJoy dropped from 3.2 percent to 3.1 percent, while Fontem Ventures’ blu eCigs was at 2.1 percent, down from 2.3 percent.

    In early April, blu received a marketing denial order from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for it MyBlu products.

    Juul overtook Vuse as market leader in 2017. Juul, founded in 2015, captured a 68 percent share of the U.S. vaping market within 3 years while Vuse’s market share had reduced to 10 percent from all-time high of 44.2 percent in 2016, according to a press release from Bluehole New Consumption.

    While the Juul and Vuse products differ in many ways, one major difference is that the Juul and Vuse Alto products use diferent coils. Juul products use a traditional cotton coil, while Vuse Alto has adopted a FEELM ceramic coil. In 2018, Vuse entered into partnership with FEELM, the flagship atomization brand for SMOORE and launched Vuse Alto later that year. SMOORE has been instrumental in every approved vaping product (Vuse, Logic and Njoy) brand.

    Credit: Feelm

    In 2021, Vuse announced its status as the No.1 global vaping brand with a full year value share of 33.5 percent in the top five vapor markets (the U.S, Canada, France, Germany and the UK), according to Bluehole. The five markets represent approximately 75 percent of total industry vapor revenue for closed-system products.

    In October 2021, the FDA issued its first marketing granted orders to Vuse Solo. In April 2022, the FDA approved NJOY’s Ace for sale. The Ace is also powered by FEELM atomization technology. In late March, the agency approved several Logic products for sale in the U.S.

    The FDA is expected to make announcements on the PMTA status for Vuse Alto, Juul and other market-leading vapor products by May 16.

  • Utah Schools Join Juul Labs Class Action Suit

    Utah Schools Join Juul Labs Class Action Suit

    Credit: Steheap

    Nearly every school district in the state of Utah joined a mass tort lawsuit against Juul Labs. Park City Schools is the only Utah school district not participating in the lawsuit.

    The lawsuit claims Juul Labs was deliberately using youthful marketing strategies. The lawsuit also claims the company misrepresents and fails to mention that its e-cigarettes are “more potent or addictive” than cigarettes, according to KUTV.

    Juul Labs removed all flavors other than tobacco, mint and menthol from their offerings in 2019 after federal regulators accused the vape maker of using the flavors to lure minors to vape. That same year, the company announced it was suspending its print, broadcast and online advertising in the United States.

    The Frantz Law Group of California has filed the mass tort lawsuit on behalf of 700 school districts across the country. Salt Lake City law firm Kirton McConkie will head up the Utah portion of the lawsuit. Attorney Jim Frantz and William Shinoff say Juul Labs directly marketed to minors, “because we’re dealing directly with minors, and undermining them and addicting them and that’s really as low as you can go,” says Frantz.