Altria’s Annual Shareholders Meeting in Richmond, Virginia: Retirement provides no change in the company’s conduct
By Edward L. Sweda, Jr. In January 2012, Altria Group, Inc. announced that CEO Michael E. Szymanczyk would retire after the completion of the company’s Annual Shareholders Meeting in Richmond, Virginia on May 17. Mr. Szymancyk worked for the company in various capacities for 23 years. Michael J. Barrington was named to succeed him as […]
Shareholder meeting report – Altria Group CEO Michael Szymanczyk: An artful dodger
By Edward L. Sweda, Jr., Senior Attorney RICHMOND, VA. – Just eight days before the Altria Group, Inc. 2011 Annual Shareholders Meeting in this historic city, Altria Group’s former Chief Executive Officer, Louis Camilleri, complicated matters for his successor. At the Philip Morris International Annual Shareholders Meeting in New York City on May 11, 2011, […]
Philip Morris and RJ Reynolds hit by $40 million verdict in Florida this week
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Edward L. Sweda, Jr. or Mark Gottlieb 617-373-8462 or 617-373-2026 A Jacksonville, Florida jury this week assessed $34 million in punitive damages against tobacco giants Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. for their reprehensible misconduct in the case of Andy Allen v. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., et al. This award […]
Florida jury Returns multi-million verdict against tobacco companies
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Contact: Edward L. Sweda (617-373-8462) or Mark Gottlieb (617-373-2026) A jury in Gainesville, Florida today assessed punitive damages in the amount of $1.5 million against R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. (RJR) and another $1.5 million against Philip Morris (PM) in an Engle Progeny case. The same jury on Tuesday night awarded the […]
New Hampshire Court Grants Class Certification for Plaintiffs in a Light Cigarettes Class Action Lawsuit against Philip Morris
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE : November 23, 2010 Contact: Edward L. Sweda, Jr. 617-373-8462 or 857-753-9560 A New Hampshire state court on Monday granted a motion to certify a class action in a lawsuit brought under that state’s Consumer Protection Act (CPA) in the case of Lawrence et al. v. Philip Morris, USA, Inc. The ruling […]
Report on Altria Group, Inc.’s Annual Shareholders Meeting – Richmond, Virginia, May 20, 2010
By Edward L. Sweda, Jr., Senior Attorney- PHAI DEATH PENALTY On May 20, 2010, the Commonwealth of Virginia executed Darick Demorris Walker, who had been convicted of murdering Stanley Beale in 1996 and Clarence Elwood Threat in 1997. Also on May 20, 2010, the Altria Group, Inc. Annual Shareholders Meeting took place in Richmond, Virginia. […]
