Gibson v. Babbitt

Plaintiff, the United Food and Commercial Workers Unions and Employers Health and Welfare Fund, is an employee health and welfare benefit plan organized under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act ("ERISA"), 29 U.S.C. § 1001 et seq. Defendants are eight manufacturers of tobacco products, three tobacco industry trade groups, one public relations firm associated with the tobacco industry, three distributors of tobacco products, and several individuals involved in the tobacco industry. Plaintiff brought suit - under Alabama law - against Defendants, seeking to recover certain costs allegedly incurred by Plaintiff due to tobacco-related illnesses. The district court dismissed Plaintiffs complaint, and Plaintiff appeals. We affirm.