DOES MASS PRODUCT TORT LITIGATION FACILITATE OR HINDER SOCIAL LEGISLATIVE REFORM? A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF TOBACCO REGULATION

Michael Moore, Mississippi State Attorney General, triumphantly proclaimed the settlement of the tobacco litigation as “the most historic public health agreement in history.” Since that moment, numerous scholars and public health advocates have lined up to debate the effectiveness of litigation in accomplishing public health policy objectives. No scholar denies the fact that litigation can have an impact on social policy. Instead, the debate has tended to center around the appropriateness of intentionally using the judiciary as a tool for creating new social policy regimes in place of legislative action. View More