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Article: North Carolina Supreme Court Orders Tobacco Firms to Make MSA Payments.
- Article from:
- The Bond Buyer
- Article date:
- August 22, 2005
- Author:
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ATLANTA -- The North Carolina Supreme Court ruled Friday that tobacco companies have to make the Phase II Tobacco Settlement payments to farmers as called for under the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement.
The decision reversed lower court ruling that prohibited the distribution. The case is State of North Carolina vs. Philip Morris USA Inc.
Farmers in 14 states are counting on that money to help compensate them for the losses they would incur partly because of higher cigarette prices. However, cigarette makers argued they didn't have to make the final payment of $5.1 billion they had agreed to pay to growers under the 1998 MSA. The companies claimed that ...