Boston Woman Loses Lawsuit over Secondhand Smoke

A jury has ruled against a Massachusetts woman who sued her real estate broker over the secondhand cigarette smoke coming from a neighbor’s condominium.

Alyssa Burrage alleged that her broker repeatedly assured her that the prior owner of the Boston condo she bought in 2006 was a smoker and the smell would go away. Burrage, who has asthma, said she later discovered the smoke was coming from a neighbor.

A jury deliberated less than an hour before siding with the broker.

A lawyer for the broker said that smoking never came up in conversations. Burrage said she was disappointed in the verdict but proud to have drawn attention to the issue.

Topics Lawsuits