On July 27, 2012, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected requests that it dismiss as moot the federal government’s long-running lawsuit against the tobacco industry. The decision was a setback for WLF, which filed a brief urging dismissal. WLF argued that Congress’s 2009 adoption of significant restrictions on the tobacco industry makes it highly unlikely that the industry would continue to engage in the manufacturing and marketing practices complained of in this lawsuit. If there is no reasonable likelihood of future violations, then there is no federal court jurisdiction to maintain an injunction against future violations, WLF argued. The appeals court disagreed, holding that the tobacco industry can get out from under continued federal court oversight only by meeting a far higher standard: demonstrating that recurrence of violations is virtually impossible. FDA’s close supervision of the industry was insufficient to meet that standard, it held.

Loss.