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JUUL E-cigarette Claims

The JUUL litigation attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth W. DeJean are investigating claims related to the JUUL e-cigarette litigation.

If you, your teen or one of your family members have used JUUL e-cigarettes, call the JUUL litigation attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth W. DeJean today in Lafayette, Louisiana at (337) 235-5294 or TEXT us at (337) 243-0985 for a complimentary case evaluation of your potential JUUL lawsuit.

What Is The JUUL e-cigarette?

A small, discreet USB-shaped vaping device created by JUUL Labs which has taken over the market share for e-cigarettes and has become “the” e-cigarette option for teens and young adults.  Altria, one of the world’s largest tobacco companies which includes Philip Morris as a subsidiary, owns a 35% stake in JUUL.    

It is shaped like a USB drive and uses a heating element (battery run) to activate a solution that produces a nicotine-laced aerosol that the user inhales.  It’s composed of essentially two components: 1.  A vaporized device and 2. Disposable pods that are prefilled with proprietary mixture of vaporizer carriers, nicotine salt extracts and flavoring.  

The JUUL e-cigarette hit the market in 2015, and since then, has become the most popular e-cigarette on the market.  According to a study conducted by Truth Initiative that was published in October of 2018, JUUL owns more than 72% of the e-cigarette market share .(1)  JUUL states on their website that their mission is to “improve the lives of the world’s one billion adult smokers.(2) ”  They add that they believe “vaping can have a positive impact when used by smokers.(3) ”

E-Cigarettes Are Not Safe

E-Cigarettes have been advertised as a “safer” alternative to regular cigarettes and as potential tools to help smokers quit.   However, the JUUL system delivers more potent doses of nicotine than traditional cigarettes.   Each JUUL pod contains as much nicotine as a pack of cigarettes (i.e., about 200 puffs).
 
Of the emerging e-cigs, JUULs have all the necessary elements to take over a substantial portion of the market share.   Its batteries can be recharged in an hour, it is flavored, it can often be used without detection, and it contains somewhere around twice the concentration of nicotine as other vape products.   Among current e-cigarette users aged 18-24 years, 40% had never been regular cigarette smokers.(4)

What The Experts Are Saying

Dr. Jonathan Winickoff, former chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Tobacco Consortium, a pediatrician at Massachusetts General Hospital and Professor at Harvard Medical School:

“JUUL is already a massive public-health disaster and without dramatic action, it’s going to get much, much, much worse.(5)”

“[i]f you were to design your ideal nicotine-delivery device to addict a large number of United State kids, you’d invent JUUL.(6)”

“It’s absolutely unconscionable. The earlier these companies introduce the product to the developing brain, the better the chance they have a lifelong user.”

Dr. Scott Gottlieb, Commissioner of the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA):

Statement issued on April 24, 2018:

“The troubling reality is that electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) such as e-cigarettes have become wildly popular with kids. We understand, by all accounts, many of them may be using products that closely resemble a USB flash drive, have high levels of nicotine and emissions that are hard to see. These characteristics may facilitate youth use, by making the products more attractive to children and teens.(7)”

“These products are also more difficult for parents and teachers to recognize or detect. Several of these products fall under the JUUL brand, but other brands, such as myblu and KandyPens, that have similar characteristics are emerging. In some cases, our kids are trying these products and liking them without even knowing they contain nicotine. And that’s a problem, because as we know the nicotine in these products can rewire an adolescent’s brain, leading to years of addiction. For this reason, the FDA must – and will – move quickly to reverse these disturbing trends, and, in particular, address the surging youth uptake of JUUL and other products. (8)”

Statement issued on April 3, 2019:

“We have reports indicating that some people who use e-cigarettes, especially youth and young adults, are experiencing seizures following their use. Seizures or convulsions are known potential side effects of nicotine poisoning and have been reported in scientific literature in relation to intentional or accidental swallowing of nicotine-containing e-liquids. (9)”

Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

“The popularity of JUUL among kids threatens our progress in reducing youth e-cigarette use. (10)”

“We are alarmed that these new high nicotine content e-cigarettes, marketed and sold in kid-friendly flavors, are so appealing to our nation’s young people. (11)”

Corinne Graffunder, DrPH, MPH, director of the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health:

“There are no redeeming benefits of e-cigarettes for young people. (12)”

“The use of certain USB-shaped e-cigarettes is especially dangerous among youth because these products contain extremely high levels of nicotine, which can harm the developing adolescent brain.

”

National Center for Health Research: (14)

“The increased harm of Juuls compared to other e-cigarettes is due to the concentration and contents of its Juul pods. The e-liquid is 5% nicotine by volume, which is more than twice the concentration of nicotine in similar devices like the Blu e-cig cartridge (2.4% nicotine). This increases the risk of addiction; in fact, a study done by the UK’s Royal College of Psychiatrists showed that nicotine is about as addictive as cocaine and even more addictive than alcohol and barbiturates (anti-anxiety drugs). (15)”

“The impact on the developing brain is also of great concern. Brain imaging studies of adolescents who began smoking at a young age had markedly reduced activity in the prefrontal cortex of the brain, an area critical for a person’s cognitive behavior and decision making, leading to increased sensitivity to other drugs and greater impulsivity. (16) While cigarettes include numerous other toxic chemicals that may contribute to these effects, other research on nicotine and brain development demonstrate that the nicotine is probably the main cause. (17)”

Potential Health Risks of JUUL Use

  • Increased risk of becoming a smoker
  • Nicotine addiction
  • Seizures
  • Harmful impact on adolescent brain development
  • Negative impact on emotional and physical development
  • COPD
  • Decreased lung development
  • Breathing difficulties
  • Asthma
  • Heart problems and cardiovascular disease
  • Immune system injuries
  • Exposure to toxic or carcinogenic chemicals
  • Impaired neurological development.


Meanwhile, although JUUL Labs alleges that their mission is to improve the lives of smokers, they continue to create nicotine solutions and flavors that are attractive to teens and young adults.
JUUL markets and advertises its e-cigarettes and pods deliberately to attract minors and young adults, including those who have never been regular tobacco smokers.
The JUUL system delivers more potent doses of nicotine than traditional cigarettes. This high level of nicotine increases the risk of long-term nicotine addiction in children, teens and young adults.

Contact Our Office Today for a COMPLIMENTARY Evaluation of Your Potential JUUL Litigation Claim

The JUUL litigation attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth W. DeJean are investigating claims related to the JUUL e-cigarette litigation. If you, your teen or one of your family members have used JUUL e-cigarettes, call the JUUL litigation attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth W. DeJean today in Lafayette, Louisiana at (337) 235-5294 or TEXT us at (337) 243-0985 for a complimentary case evaluation of your potential JUUL lawsuit.

[1] https://truthinitiative.org/sites/default/files/media/files/2019/03/Study-Reveals-Teens-16-Times-More-Likely-to-Use-JUUL-than-Older-Age-Groups.pdf

[2] https://www.juul.com/mission-values

[3] https://www.juul.com/mission-values

[4] https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/e-cigarettes/about-e-cigarettes.html

[5] https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/05/14/the-promise-of-vaping-and-the-rise-of-juul

[6] https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/05/14/the-promise-of-vaping-and-the-rise-of-juul

[7] https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/statement-fda-commissioner-scott-gottlieb-md-new-enforcement-actions-and-youth-tobacco-prevention

[8] https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/statement-fda-commissioner-scott-gottlieb-md-new-enforcement-actions-and-youth-tobacco-prevention

[9] https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/statement-fda-commissioner-scott-gottlieb-md-and-principal-deputy-commissioner-amy-abernethy-md-phd

[10] https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2018/p1002-e-Cigarettes-sales-danger-youth.html

[11] https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2018/p1002-e-Cigarettes-sales-danger-youth.html

[12] https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2018/p1002-e-Cigarettes-sales-danger-youth.html

[13] https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2018/p1002-e-Cigarettes-sales-danger-youth.html

[14] http://www.center4research.org/the-dangers-of-juuling/

[15] Nutt D, King LA, Saulsbury W, & Blakemore C.  Development of a rational scale to assess the harm of drugs of potential misuse. The Lancet. 2007;369(9566): 1047-1053.  https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(07)60464-4/fulltext

[16] Musso F, Bettermann F, Vucurevic G, et al. (2007). Smoking impacts on prefrontal attentional network function in young adult brains. Psychopharmacology. 2007;191(1): 159-169.   https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16937098

[17] Yuan M, Cross SJ, Loughlin SE, Leslie FM. Nicotine and the adolescent brain. Journal of Physiology. 2015;593(16):3397-412. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4560573/

The Law Offices of Kenneth W. DeJean
Phone: (337) 235-5294
Toll Free: (800) 284-3962
E-mail: kwdejean@kwdejean.com