The silver lining in a recent Florida Supreme Court ruling against a sick-smokers class-action lawsuit was that the justices concluded that the tobacco industry had negligently marketed their product. Now, Big Tobacco is challenging that ruling, CBS4-TV News in Miami reported Aug. 7.

The high court threw out a $145-billion class-action verdict against the industry, but the negligence ruling left the door open for sick smokers to file individual lawsuits against tobacco companies.

Lawyers for Philip Morris contend that the court's ruling is in conflict with state and federal law. The company also contends that the court must address other legal issues before individual lawsuits can proceed.