BUDGET: EU FILES NEW COMPLAINT AGAINST US TOBACCO GIANTS.

• Position: Brief Article

The latest proceedings are supported by Italy, Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Belgium, The Netherlands, Finland and Luxembourg. The Commission has indicated that no further comment will be made on the content of the claim by any official, agent or counsel of the European Commission outside the Court proceedings. However, under the rules of American civil procedure, the complaint as filed with the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York is a document of public record.In its first action of November 3, 2000 against Philip Morris and RJ Reynolds for alleged involvement in cigarette smuggling into the Union, the Commission sought compensation for the financial injury arising through the smuggling (excise duty and VAT fraud), as well as a Court order...