Australia wins international legal battle with Philip Morris over plain packaging. - Polidicks

[QUOTE][IMG]http://i.imgur.com/fuUy7iB.jpg[/IMG] Australia has won an international legal battle to uphold its world-leading tobacco control measures, with Philip Morris failing in its long-running attempt to challenge plain packaging laws under a bilateral trade agreement with Hong Kong. Philip Morris Asia Limited launched its challenge against the Australian government in 2011, seeking to rely on an argument that the ban on trademarks breached foreign investment provisions of Australia’s 1993 Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement with Hong Kong. But the arbitral tribunal has declined jurisdiction to hear the case, the company said in a statement issued on Friday. Source: [URL]http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2015/dec/18/australia-wins-international-legal-battle-with-philip-morris-over-plain-packaging[/URL][/QUOTE] It feels kind of bad that they won it on a technicality. It means that it probably won't be used as precedence in the fight for validity on the world stage -- but, it's a win none-the-less.

That's not a technicality. That's a legal reason as to why Philip Morris cannot go to a non-Australian court to have an Australian judicial decision overturned. That's as good a win as any. [editline]18th December 2015[/editline] Even if they had won that matter, Australia could not be forced to do anything.

[QUOTE=DogGunn;49342095]That's not a technicality. That's a legal reason as to why Philip Morris cannot go to a non-Australian court to have an Australian judicial decision overturned. That's as good a win as any. [editline]18th December 2015[/editline] Even if they had won that matter, Australia could not be forced to do anything.[/QUOTE] The reason why I say it's a technicality is more-so for Phillip Morris who moved assets to Hong Kong in order to validate their claim when they used this avenue for legal proceedings.

Yay prohibitionists win!

[QUOTE=zakedodead;49343613]Yay prohibitionists win![/QUOTE] What? Cigarettes aren't prohibited, they just have federals laws imposed on how they are sold. Way to both not read the article, nor have any clue about the on-going plain-packaging lawsuits.

[QUOTE=zakedodead;49343613]Yay prohibitionists win![/QUOTE] I remember I bought some off-brand vegemite and when i opened the jar there was nothing in it. Hell, every time I backspace my whole damn computer disappears.

[QUOTE=zakedodead;49343613]Yay prohibitionists win![/QUOTE] you can still buy cigarettes in Australia from anywhere (petrol station, shopping centre etc) just that they're behind a curtain or a door, some stores don't have cigarettes labels or prices displayed and there's plain packaging

To people outside of Australia who are iffy about plain-packaging: After a couple of months you just don't notice. Life goes on. I was angry when the law was first introduced, but after some reflection I realised it makes no difference to me. I'm still getting the same cigarettes. I can still smoke if I want. Plain packaging helps lower the smoking rate and dissuades younger people picking up the habit. I'm more than happy to have olive drab packets if it means less people will die in the long run. If you are truly offended that your cigarette packets aren't colourful anymore than I think you need to think carefully about why you care so much.