The Supreme Court on 12 December rejected a bid from the tobacco industry to block a California ban on flavoured tobacco products, reports CNBC.

The ban (Proposition 31) was overwhelmingly approved by voters in November and will prohibit the sale of most flavoured tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes.
The emergency plea was filed by R.J. Reynolds and other major tobacco companies to stop or delay the measure, which is set to take effect on 19 December.
The law was first passed two years ago, but tobacco companies successfully funded a campaign to block its implementation and put the issue on this year’s statewide ballot.
R.J. Reynolds, which sells Newport menthol cigarettes, argued the ban contradicts the Tobacco Control Act of 2009, a federal law that prohibits states from banning the sale of tobacco products.
Once the statewide law takes effect, California will become the second state in the nation to enact a statewide ban, after Massachusetts.