WASHINGTON —

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The Supreme Court on Monday handed a surprising defeat to tobacco companies counting on it to put some end to lawsuits alleging deceptive marketing of “unencumbered” cigarettes.

In a 5-4 split won by the judicial tribunal’session liberals, it ruled that smokers may use category consumer protection laws to sue cigarette makers for the way they promote “light” and “reduced tar” brands.

The decision was at odds by recent anti-consumer rulings that limited condition order of business in favor of federal power.

Altria Group Inc. argued on behalf of its Philip Morris USA subsidiary that the lawsuits are barred by the federal cigarette labeling science of laws, which forbids states from regulating any posture of cigarette advertising that involves smoking and health.

Justice John Paul Stevens, however, said in his majority opinion that the labeling law does not protection the companies from pomp laws against deceptive practices. The decision forces tobacco companies to defend dozens of suits filed by smokers in Maine, at which place the case originated, and over the country.

People suing the cigarette makers still must prove that the use of ‘light’ and ‘lowered tar’ actually violate the state anti-fraud laws, but those lawsuits may go forward, Stevens said.

Altria senior vice president and associate general admonition Murray Garnick said the company still could prevail in these fraud lawsuits. “We continue to view these cases as manageable, and the company desire assert many of the strong defenses used successfully in the past to defend against this actual type of case,” Garnick said.

Stevens was joined by dint of. dint of. the other refining justices, Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and David Souter, as not amiss similar to Justice Anthony Kennedy, whose voice often decides cases where there is an ideological division.

The conservative justices, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Samuel Alito, Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas, dissented.

Thomas, writing for the dissenters, said the lawsuit should be thrown out because it relies on claims through smokers’ health.

“The alleged misrepresentation here - that ‘light’ and ‘low-tar’ cigarettes are not during the time that healthy as advertised - is actionable only because of the effect that smoking kindle and low-tar cigarettes had on respondents’ health,” Thomas said.

Shares of Altria Group Inc. fell 17 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $15.17 in morning trading Monday while shares of rival cigarette builder Reynolds American Inc. hardened 91 cents, or 2.2 percent, to $39.64.

Original text: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2008521450_apscotuscigarettesuit.html?syndication=rss