A federal judge in Florida has allowed deceptive-practices claims against Philip Morris International (PMI) and Swedish Match North America LLC to move forward, Law360 reports. On December 12, U.S. District Judge William P. Dimitrouleas of the Southern District of Florida denied the companies’ motion to dismiss claims brought by plaintiff Kovadis Palmer under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA).

Palmer says PMI and Swedish Match marketed Zyn nicotine pouches as “tobacco-free,” implying a lower risk of addiction even though the nicotine is derived from tobacco, and that he developed nicotine dependence as a result. The court had earlier dismissed Palmer’s common-law fraud claims for failing to meet the heightened pleading standard, but it found the amended FDUTPA claims present a different legal theory.

Judge Dimitrouleas explained that FDUTPA claims do not require proof of intent to deceive and are not governed by the stricter fraud pleading rules. For that reason, the court concluded the FDUTPA allegations are not simply a repackaged version of the dismissed fraud claims and allowed them to proceed.

This article was adapted from an original report published on tobaccoreporter.com. All rights belong to the original publisher.