The Florida State Supreme Court rejected arguments by RJ Reynolds Tobacco that punitive damages in Engle progeny suits be confined to issues of concealment or conspiracy, the Tampa Bay Business Journal said.

Plaintiffs in the progeny cases, in which evidence from a disallowed class-action suit can be used to pursue individual claims, may also seek punitive damages from cigarette makers for negligence and strict liability, the Journal said in a story filed by the News Service of Florida.
"We conclude that there is no legal or principled basis for denying Engle progeny plaintiffs the right to pursue punitive damages on all properly pled counts,'' the court reportedly said in its ruling in favour of plaintiff Lucille Soffer, whose husband died of lung cancer in 1992.