Frank J. Greenberg filed the lawsuit Tuesday in the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit in Palm Beach County against R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, Philip Morris USA Inc. and Publix. According to the complaint, Greenberg started smoking at just 12 years old and kept up a habit of one and a half to two packs a day for decades, working through Lucky Strike, Marlboro Red and Camel cigarettes. He finally quit in 2008. In late 2024, he was diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, commonly known as COPD.
The lawsuit accuses R.J. Reynolds and Philip Morris of engineering cigarettes to hook smokers young and keep them hooked, including by adding ammonia-based compounds to boost nicotine’s punch and designing filters that gave smokers a false sense of safety. Greenberg’s attorneys argue the companies knew filtered cigarettes did little to cut the risk of cancer or lung disease, yet marketed them as “safer” and “milder” anyway. The complaint lays out claims of negligence, strict liability and fraud against both manufacturers.
Publix is named as a defendant too, accused of selling defective cigarette products to Greenberg over the years he smoked. The lawsuit doesn’t specify an exact dollar figure but seeks damages above $50,000, covering pain and suffering, mental anguish, medical bills and lost income…