Personal Injury Law

Florida Tobacco Engle Class Members Must Register before June 16, 2008

By Brenda Fulmer

At a hearing on April 15, 2008, Judge David Miller in Miami made a number of rulings with regard to the distribution of the Engle Trust Fund (the "Fund"), previously referred to as the Guaranteed Sum.  Qualified Engle class members must register no later than June 16, 2008 and submit documentation to substantiate their claims prior to August 1, 2008, in order to be eligible for a share of the Trust Fund. The $710 million fund was established for two purposes: (1) to compensate Stanley and Susan Rosenblatt for their fifteen years of legal work on the Engle class action trial that created special rights for Florida smokers to pursue individual claims, and (2) to provide payment of the remainder to former members of the Engle class.   Members of the Engle class are eligible to receive a share of the Trust Fund if they meet these deadlines and can properly document with contemporaneous, verifiable proof that they suffered, presently suffer, or have died from specified diseases and medical conditions that were first diagnosed or manifested themselves on or before November 21, 1996.  The specified tobacco-related diseases and conditions include:  aortic aneurysm, bladder cancer, cerebrovascular disease (including stroke), cervical cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and emphysema, coronary heart disease (including cardiovascular disease, hardening of the arteries, atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease, arteriolosclerosis, angina, abnormal blood clotting, blood vessel damage, myocardial infarction or heart attack), esophageal or throat cancer, kidney cancer, laryngeal or voice box cancer, lung cancer (including adenocarcinoma, large cell carcinoma, small cell carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma), complications of pregnancy (miscarriage), oral cavity or tongue cancer, pancreatic cancer, peripheral vascular disease (including Buerger's disease), pharyngeal cancer, and stomach cancer. 

To obtain more information or view the April 2008 Court notice, visit www.EngleTrustFund.com.  The law firm of Alley, Clark, Greiwe & Fulmer has been extensively involved in negotiations and hearings with regard to protection and distribution of this Trust Fund to Engle class members.  Please contact our office for more information regarding the important June 16, 2008, and August 1, 2008, deadlines.  

Full post as published by Tampa Bay Personal Injury Law on April 23, 2008 (boomark / email).