Juul Labs is sueing the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) over the agency’s refusal to disclose documents justifying the ban on Juul e-cigarettes, reports Reuters.

The complaint, in which Juul accuses the FDA of violating the federal Freedom of Information Act by  not releasing documents supporting its order to have Juul’s e-cigarette products banned, was filed with a federal court in Washington, D.C. According to Reuters, Juul said the FDA had “invoked the ‘widely abused’ deliberative process privilege to improperly withhold scientific materials that are ‘central’ to understanding the basis for the June 23 sales ban.”
Juul claims that the documents would show whether or not the FDA had done its research on Juul’s products including the legally required balancing of the public health benefits and risks of its products and whether the agency’s verdict was scientifically correct, reports Reuters.
“The public deserves a complete picture of the scientific facts behind one of the agency’s most controversial and closely scrutinized decisions in recent years,” said Juul.
The FDA has declined to comment on the matter.
The case is Juul Labs Inc v Food & Drug Administration, U.S. District Court, District of Columbia, No. 22-02853.