THE CIVIL LIABILITY OF THE TOBACCO INDUSTRY: AN ANALYSIS FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE THEORY OF CONCURRENT RISK

Abstract

The following work is inspired by a true case of a lawsuit that was proposed in the city of Londrina/PR, against Souza Cruz S/A - multinational company that produces cigarettes - in which asked for indemnity for suffering a heart attack in the year 2000, with the allegation that the illness was aggravated by years of smoking dependence. It is the purpose of this work to analyze what are the general aspects of civil responsibility in this lawsuit, tracing a historical background that goes through the consolidation of the subjective responsibility, culminating with the modern aspect - according to the Constitution of the Republic - of the objective responsibility. We will analyze, in this sense, the applicability of the risk theory and their consequences within the civil right, notably regarding the brand new theory called 'concurrence risk theory', having always in sight the Consumer Defense Code, a CF/88, and the applicability in analog cases, of smoking victims going against the tobacco industry. The main objective of this article is, above all, to sustain a debate about the complex question of smoking addiction, your damages to the society and the true responsibility of the companies that produces cigarettes.