Ouch!

You would think this might hurt their bottom line:

PENSACOLA, Fla. -- A Florida jury has returned one of the largest verdicts ever against a tobacco company.

The jury in the case Cynthia Robinson v. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company sided Friday night with Robinson, the widow of a longtime smoker who died of lung cancer in 1996, to award her more than $16 million in compensatory damages and $23 billion in punitive damages.

Following a nearly four-week trial, the jury deliberated for 15 hours to eventually determine that the tobacco company was negligent in informing Robinson's husband, Michael Johnson Sr., that smoking causes lung cancer and that nicotine is highly addictive.

"The environment today is completely different than it was in the '50s and '60s, when Robinson's husband was alive," said Christopher Chestnut, one of the woman's attorneys. Reynolds knew its product was addictive, but it didn't market it correctly. The company lied and marketed cigarettes as safe, yet they contained countless harmful chemicals."

Johnson became addicted to cigarettes and contracted and later died of lung cancer.

Read more here.


Photo: Justin Sullivan, Getty Images)

But wait, there was more news last week about R.J. Reynolds:

As the U.S. cigarette market dips, the nation's second-largest tobacco company, Reynolds American, announced Tuesday that it plans to buy the third-largest one, Lorillard, for about $27.4 billion, creating a rival for market leader and Marlboro maker Altria.

Reynolds, maker of Camel and Pall Mall, will acquire Lorillard, maker of Newport, for cash and stock valued at $68.88 per Lorillard share. The deal, which includes assumption of Lorillard debt, is one of the largest ever in the tobacco industry and will likely face scrutiny from regulators.

Read more fascinating details here.