- Juul Labs settled over 5,000 lawsuits covering 10,000 plaintiffs on Tuesday.
- The company said it secured an equity investment to fund the settlement, according to a spokesperson.
- Juul agreed to pay $439 million to US states and territories in a separate settlement in September.
Juul Labs has announced the settlement of over 5,000 vaping lawsuits, including two trials that were set to go to court in early 2023.
The e-cigarette company said on Tuesday it secured an equity investment to cover 5,000 lawsuits with about 10,000 individual plaintiffs for an undisclosed amount, according to a statement from Juul.
In a memo to staff, Juul CEO K.C. Crosthwaite said the latest settlement “addresses the vast majority of outstanding litigation facing our company.”
“In our ongoing fight for our company and mission, today’s news represents yet another significant step to secure our path forward,” Crosthwaite said in the memo, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
The news comes after Juul agreed to pay 33 states and Puerto Rico $438.5 million in September as part of a separate settlement, following a multi-state investigation that found the company had marketed vaping products to underage minors, authorities said.
“With both new investments in the company’s mission and a resolution like the one achieved (Tuesday), Juul Labs is charting a path forward to continue to advance tobacco harm reduction through science and technology for over 31 million adult smokers in the US and over 1 billion adult smokers worldwide,” a Juul spokesperson told Insider.
Plaintiffs of the suit include Juul consumers, personal-injury plaintiffs, government entities, and Native American tribes, WSJ reported.
A spokesperson for the vape company told Insider the settlement is a “major step” in shaping the future of the company.
“These settlements represent a major step toward strengthening Juul Labs’ operations and securing the company’s path forward to fulfill its mission to transition adult smokers away from combustible cigarettes while combating underage use,” the spokesperson said.
Juul had been in talks with investors — including Hyatt Hotels heir Nick Pritzker and California billionaire Riaz Valani — about funding a bailout that would help Juul avoid bankruptcy and cover legal liabilities, WSJ’s Jennifer Maloney reported in November.
In June, the Food and Drug Administration announced a ban on Juul e-cigarettes in the US but eventually stayed the decision after an appeal from the company.
