Mark Gottlieb

Mark Gottlieb joined the staff of the Public Health Advocacy Institute in 1993 after graduating from Northeastern University School of Law. His efforts have focused on researching tobacco litigation as a public health strategy as director of the Tobacco Products Liability Project, reducing the harm caused by secondhand tobacco smoke through a variety of legal and policy approaches, fostering scholarship using tobacco industry documents, and, more recently, examining legal and policy approaches to address obesity. He is the Executive Director of the Institute and lives in Cambridge, MA with his wife and three children.

Canadian Class Action Lawsuits Seek Billions of Dollars from Major Tobacco Companies

1 Comment / News, Tobacco /

Two historic class action lawsuits that were filed in 1998 finally reached trial on March 12, 2012 in Montreal.  The cases, Cecilia Letourneau v. JTI_Macdonald Corp., Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd. and Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc. and Conseil quebecois sur le tabac et la santé and Jean-Yves Blais v. JTI-Macdonald Corp., Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd. […]

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Jury in Miami Assesses $25 Million in Punitive Damages Against Tobacco Firm in an Engle Progeny Trial

Press release, Tobacco /

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Edward L. Sweda, Jr. (617) 373-8462 A Florida state jury today assessed $25 million in punitive damages against Lorillard Tobacco Co. for its reprehensible misconduct involving the lung cancer death of Coleman Alexander.  His widow Dorothy, a retired nurse who brought a wrongful death lawsuit against the company, was awarded $20

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FDA Action Needed to Address Diet Coke’s Blatant & Unlawful Use of Heart Health Claims

Feet to the Fire, Food/Beverage Marketing, Legal Filings /

The Public Health Advocacy Institute is asking the FDA to investigate and take enforcement action against The Coca-Cola Company’s unlawful use of heart health claims on cans of Diet Coke.  In February of 2010, 2011 and 2012, The Coca-Cola Company has released Diet Coke cans labeled with a large red heart symbol, the National Heart

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General Mills Uses Whole Grain Claims to Distract from Sugar Content

2 Comments / Feet to the Fire, Food/Beverage Marketing /

By Cara Wilking, Staff Attorney Like a good mother, General Mills loves all of her “Big G” cereals the same. Consumers, however, should not. The company has chosen to market all of its Big G cereals as containing “More Whole Grain Than Any Other Ingredient*” (the asterisk takes you to the disclaimer “*as compared to

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The Cost of McDonald’s Happy Meal Toys

2 Comments / Feet to the Fire, Food/Beverage Marketing, Uncategorized /

By Cara Wilking, Staff Attorney The passage of San Francisco’s Healthy Food Incentives Ordinance and McDonald’s recent decision to “comply” with the law by charging 10 cents in order to be able to include toys with meals that do not meet minimal nutritional criteria has engendered a lot of public debate. The following table summarizes information

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PHAI Releases New Resources to Use Law to Fight Junk Food Marketing to Kids

1 Comment / Food/Beverage Marketing, News, Press release, Publications /

Food and beverage marketing targeting children is a major focus of the food and beverage industry because, as the Institute of Medicine’s report on the subject bluntly declared, “marketing works.” Deceptive and unfair marketing to promote high-calorie low-nutrient foods and beverages affect parent-consumer food purchasing decisions and induce demand among children for products that contribute

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Federal Judge Blasts RJ Reynolds for Providing a “Wholly Inaccurate Description of the Trial Record” and Upholds Multi-Million Dollar Verdict

Legal Filings, Press release, Tobacco /

For Immediate Release   Contact: Edward L. Sweda, Jr. (617) 373-8462 U.S. District Court Judge Stefan R. Underhill on Friday denied R.J. Reynolds’ motion for a new trial or for judgment as a matter of law in the case of Izzarelli v. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. Barbara Izzarelli smoked Salem King cigarettes for 25 years until

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McDonald’s Happy Meals with Soda & Fries Still the “Most Popular” Meal Combinations

Feet to the Fire, Uncategorized /

  by Cara Wilking, J.D. The National Restaurant Association announced last week  that a number of chain restaurants will be offering healthier children’s meal menu options. McDonald’s has opted not to participate in the initiative.  Likely it will point to the fact that it already offers apple slices and milk and that it only advertises

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Organizations that Care About Health Should Play No Part in the Soft Drink Industry’s Effort to Rehabilitate Its Public Image

1 Comment / Feet to the Fire, Food/Beverage Marketing /

by Cara Wilking, J.D. CLICK HERE DOWNLOAD THIS POST AS A PDF INTRODUCTION The United States has the highest per capita rate of carbonated soft drink consumption in the world at 736 eight-ounce servings or 46 gallons per person in 2009.[1] The soft drink industry is dominated by three major companies: The Coca-Cola Company (“Coke”),

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