FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                        
CIV
MONDAY, JUNE 8, 1998                              
(202) 616-2765                                              
TDD (202) 514-1888



                                                 NEWS ADVISORY

ORAL REARGUMENT SET FOR TUESDAY IN TOBACCO REGULATION CASE



	WASHINGTON, D.C., Oral argument is scheduled for 9:00 a.m.
Tuesday in Charleston, W.Va., in a case before the United States Court
of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, challenging the Food and Drug
Administration regulation of tobacco products.


	FDA regulations on access to tobacco by minors and the ability of
companies to advertise tobacco products were challenged in District
Court in Greensboro, North Carolina.  The district court's decision,
filed on April 25, 1997, upheld the FDA's authority to regulate
cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products as "drugs" and "devices"
under the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, but did not uphold the FDA's
advertising restrictions.  Both sides appealed to the Fourth Circuit.


	Arguments in the case were originally heard by a three judge panel
on August 11, 1997, but reargument was scheduled for June 9 after one
of the judges died before the panel ruled.

	
	The case is being handled by the Department of Justice Civil
Division, Office of Consumer Litigation.


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