1.   It was also last month that a federal judge refused to dismiss the state lawsuit against Desert Diamond Casino.

2.   Although the first state lawsuits were filed by Democrats, the cause has now become bipartisan.

3.   Any federal lawsuit brought to recover Medicare money would face the same hurdles as the state lawsuits, which were based on novel legal theories.

4.   At the same time, Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon is negotiating to settle allegations of pollution violations in a state lawsuit against the hog producer.

5.   Because cigarette makers want to eliminate their risk from state lawsuits, they may walk away from the settlement if not enough states sign on.

6.   Beyond the state lawsuits, the settlement would ban future class-action lawsuits.

7.   A look at the state lawsuit considered by many observers to pose the greatest threat to the cigarette industry.

8.   A tentative deal negotiated by some state attorneys general with the tobacco companies to settle state lawsuits against the industry also appears inadequate to combat teen smoking.

9.   Businesses felt partly vindicated, however, by language in the decision supporting the notion that state lawsuits would be barred in cases where federal law does impose requirements.

10.   But some officials suggest that the real issue for negotiators should be industry giants like Philip Morris who are the subject of state lawsuits.