Vaping (E-Cigarette Use)

Vaping means using an e-cigarette, a battery-powered device that heats a liquid (often called e-liquid or juice) into an aerosol the user inhales. The CDC notes that e-cigarettes are also called e-cigs, vapes, vape pens, and electronic nicotine delivery systems, and that most contain nicotine, the addictive drug in regular cigarettes. Pod-based devices, disposables, and refillable tanks all fall under the term.

Public health agencies are direct about the risks for young people. The CDC says e-cigarettes should not be used by youth, young adults, or people who are pregnant, and that no e-cigarette has been approved by the FDA as a smoking cessation aid. Nicotine can harm the developing adolescent brain, and high-nicotine pods can lead to dependence quickly.

Vaping has produced several kinds of legal claims:

• Youth marketing and addiction. Families, school districts, and states sued e-cigarette makers claiming they designed and marketed flavored, high-nicotine products in ways that hooked teenagers. Many of those cases have settled.
• Lung injury. In 2019, an outbreak of serious lung injuries linked to vaping, known as EVALI, was tied mainly to THC products containing vitamin E acetate.
• Battery fires and explosions. Defective lithium-ion batteries in some devices have caused burns, which are product liability claims.
• Nicotine poisoning. Children who swallow liquid nicotine can be seriously harmed.

Injury claims like these are usually individual cases grouped as a mass tort, while false marketing claims can proceed as class actions. See class action vs. mass tort and types of class action lawsuits. This page is general information, not medical advice.