Tennessee schools join pending lawsuit against vaping manufacturer to recover costs
Submitted by Lauren Miller
June 22, 2021

School systems across the state have the opportunity to join the Knox County Board of Education and 18 other Tennessee school districts in a pending lawsuit against the world’s largest manufacturer of vaping products for intentionally marketing to young students.

Knox County Schools, with 58,000-plus students and 88 schools, became the latest and largest system in Tennessee to thus far join the lawsuit. The Knox County Board of Education voted unanimously this month to join other districts seeking to recover the costs of current and future prevention programs, counseling and treatment for addicted students.

The manufacturer of vaping products, JUUL Labs, Inc., is the subject of the lawsuit that asserts that the company fraudulently and intentionally marketed to children through social media, online advertising and children’s television networks. Attorneys contend JUUL marketed candy and fruit-flavored vapes, or pods, to appeal to young people, and vaping products were sold online, making it easier to avoid legal age requirements.

“Tennessee students were misled when JUUL said vaping was not harmful, because we now know vaping products actually can have 10 times the nicotine of a cigarette,” said attorney Chris McCarty of Lewis Thomason law firm, which is the Tennessee counsel on the lawsuit. “School systems suffer costs of prevention programs and counseling when students become addicted to e-cigarettes.”

William Shinoff, an attorney with the Frantz Law Group in California and counsel on the national lawsuit, said the potential benefits for school districts participating in the lawsuit include:

• Compensation so that districts are not forced to draw from general funds for prevention and treatment programs. • Funding for education programs to warn about the harmful health effects of vaping. • Additional staffing to prevent vaping on school grounds. • Counselors to handle social and emotional issues that result from nicotine addiction. • Placement of vaping detectors in bathrooms.

In addition, funding from school districts is not required to join the lawsuit, and attorneys are working on a contingency basis.

The lawsuit also seeks intervention to ban the sale of the flavor pods and stop the intentional marketing of the product to children. As far as detrimental impact, Shinoff pointed to a U.S. Surgeon General advisory on e-cigarette use among youth.

“The advisory said JUUL e-cigarettes have a high level of nicotine, and nicotine use during adolescence can harm the developing brain and impact learning, memory and attention,” Shinoff said. “To protect our children and students, this is an issue that needs to be stopped in its tracks, and school boards are on the front lines of the battle.”

Tennessee school systems that have joined the lawsuit so far include Bledsoe County, Bristol City, Cannon County, Chester County, Claiborne County, Cumberland County, Elizabethton City, Etowah City, Greeneville City, Greene County, Humphreys County, Knox County, Lincoln County, Millington Municipal, Oneida Special School District, Putnam County, Roane County, Sullivan County and Warren County.

Shinoff and McCarty said other school districts interested in joining the lawsuit may contact them at:

William B. Shinoff
Attorney
Frantz Law Group
wshinoff@frantzlawgroup.com
Toll Free: 855-735-5945

Chris McCarty
Attorney at Law
Lewis Thomason
cmccarty@lewisthomason.com
865-541-5256

About Lewis Thomason
Lewis Thomason is a statewide Tennessee law firm with offices in Knoxville, Nashville, Memphis and Sevierville. Chris McCarty practices in the areas of education law, employment law and civil litigation.

About Frantz Law Group
Frantz Law Group is a full-service law firm with offices across California. William Shinoff practices in several areas of the law including mass tort/class action cases and has represented school boards and public entities.