A jury awarded $37.5 million Tuesday to a Florida smoker who alleged three of the nation's leading tobacco companies contributed to his terminal bladder and oral cancer. John Lukacs, a retired Miami lawyer and former World War II Navy pilot, smoked Philip Morris, Brown & Williamson and Liggett Group brand cigarettes for nearly 30 years. The case is the first tobacco suit to reach trial in the state since a jury awarded 700,000 Florida smokers $145 billion in a historic class-action suit two years ago. The liability verdict opened the door to Lukacs' lawsuit.

Attorneys representing the tobacco giants say they will appeal the verdict, citing the fact that Lukacs stopped smoking cigarettes in 1971 and switched to cigars and pipes. The defense also stated that the case should never have gone to trial while the tobacco companies are appealing the July 2000 verdict. Doctors have told Lukacs that he has seven months to live.