HOUSTON – Texas cities, counties and even school districts hoping to jump of the Juul litigation bandwagon will most likely not be able to board, as Attorney General Ken Paxton recently rejected two contingent contracts seeking to green light lawsuits against the vaping company.
Back in October, Harris County sent a contingent fee contract to the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) for approval, seeking to pursue claims against the manufactures, distributors and marketers of vaping and e-cigarette products.
“Vaping products are marketed to Harris County’s youth and lead to significant increases in adverse health effects related to vaping and nicotine addiction,” the request stated.
Last March, Waxahachie ISD also submitted a contingency fee contract to the OAG, seeking approval to sue Juul.
While Texas school districts suing Juul isn’t exactly a trend, school districts in states such as New York and California have already filed lawsuits against Juul and other vape companies.
The Record has obtained documents show the OAG refused to approve both contracts on Dec. 14.
Nearly a year ago now, Paxton announced his office was leading a bipartisan, 39-state investigation into JUUL, stating that he was “committed to holding companies accountable for the quality, effects, and marketing of their products.”
The OAG decide not to approve contingent contracts because the state is preparing a suit of its own, the letters state.
Prior to the passage of House Bill 2826 late last summer, Texas law required local governments to submit contingency-fee contracts to the state comptroller for approval. Since the law went into effect, approval for such contracts must be obtained from the OAG instead.
Right before the passage of the law two years ago, dozens of Texas municipalities filed opioid suits, which have since been ushered into a state MDL. HB 2826 allows the OAG to stop future litigation surges from local governments in order to file one suit for the whole state.