The Florida Supreme Court may have thrown out the $145 billion punitive damage verdict levied against the tobacco industry, but that is not the end of the road for the Florida smokers who were members of this class action against the industry giants.

While the court discarded the verdict on the basis that it was excessive "as a matter of law" because it would have bankrupted the five tobacco defendants, it made it easier for each ailing Florida smoker to file their own individual claims for illnesses ranging from cancer to emphysema. Four of the six justices let stand key findings by the Circuit Court, including that cigarette manufacturers were negligent and that their products were defective, unreasonably dangerous and addictive.

The firm's Hector Lombana believes that the ruling will lead to thousands of claims being filed by this time next year by the more than 700,000 class members statewide.

"With the recent ruling, individual plaintiffs will only be required to prove medical causation, damages, acts of fraud that may be alleged and apportionment of fault among the defendants," he said. "I believe that tens of thousands of streamlined cases will be filed in the state by next July."

The ruling applies to a variety of tobacco-related illnesses that run the gamut from lung and oral cancer to various cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases. To qualify under the ruling, a potential plaintiff must have demonstrated symptoms of tobacco-related disease prior to November 2, 1996, and must file suit by July 7, 2007.

Since these individual cases are expected to be very difficult and expensive to try, it will be vital for the plaintiffs to work with highly qualified legal counsel. The partners and associates of the law firm of Gamba & Lombana are very familiar and experienced with product and medical liability matters, and we are available to answer any questions about individual suits against the tobacco industry in the wake of the Florida Supreme Court's landmark ruling in Engle et al. v. Liggett et al.