Two vapers from California and Alabama have sued JUUL over injuries to their lungs caused by the JUUL e-cigarette. The two Plaintiffs, Timothy Malaney and Brendan Gorman, allege that they were deceived by JUUL about the risks of addiction and permanent harm from the JUUL nicotine vape, and that their injuries were caused by that deceit.
The Plaintiffs seek compensation and medical monitoring for a national class of vapers suffering similar injuries. Their suit, the first of its kind in the country, was filed in Los Angeles on October 26th.
Attorney Francois M. Blaudeau, MD, JD, who heads the Southern Institute for Medical & Legal Affairs, represents the Plaintiffs, together with Heninger Garrison Davis LLC partner Lew Garrison. The Plaintiffs’ Los Angeles attorney is Steven Ritcheson of Insight PLC.
The Plaintiffs claim that JUUL failed to investigate and/or warn of the potential negative health consequences of its e-cigarette. The company knew or should have known that chemicals and nicotine from the JUUL vape can cause a severe hypersensitivity reaction in the lungs, producing pneumonia and requiring hospitalization in otherwise healthy teenagers and young adults. Additionally, daily JUUL use can lead to restrictive airway disease and permanent lung injury. In patients who never smoked, or only occasionally smoked, the nicotine “hit” of JUUL can lead to nicotine addiction and behavioral dependency.
The suit asks for medical monitoring, because damage from vaping can be assessed by advanced pulmonary function testing and bronchoscopy which identify young adults at risk for long-term injury.
The Plaintiffs demand that JUUL establish a fund to medically monitor all JUUL users within the United States. That will allow the medical community, the FDA, and the world to fully understand the negative health consequences of this vaping epidemic.
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Vaping and vape products have become a global phenomenon with the United States vaping market expected to exceed 5.5 billion dollars in 2018. JUUL is expected to capture 70% of this market. Recently, medical research into vaping has begun to catch up with the industry, with new medical literature being released every day illustrating the negative health effects of e-cigarettes.
While vaping was believed to be a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes, the new studies being released paint a much different picture. Not only is JUUL use found to have similar health consequences to traditional cigarette smoking, it also carries with it risks of distinct and permanent injuries not seen in regular tobacco smokers. These facts indicate that JUUL falsely advertises its product as a trendy, fun and safe alternative to traditional cigarettes.
If you or a loved one have used JUUL, we would like to talk to you. Please contact the JUUL Litigation Hotline: 855-347-8590.
The lawsuit is Malaney et al. v JUUL Labs, Inc. et al., Superior Court of the State of California (Los Angeles County), No. 18 ST CV 02948
