The Runaway Jury

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of illness, death, addiction, and substance use.

The legal system plays a central role in the development of The Runaway Jury. The plot follows a civil case in which the widow of a man who died of lung cancer sues a tobacco company. The tobacco companies have immense financial resources, and they use those resources to avoid responsibility for the harm their products cause: “Each of their companies spent millions in Washington on various groups trying to reform tort laws so that responsible companies like themselves could be protected from litigation. They needed a shield from such senseless attacks by alleged victims” (12-13). The ironic language here—“responsible companies,” “senseless attacks”—illustrates the blinkered mindset of the companies themselves, who are so invested in the sale of tobacco that they refuse to see the damage they are doing. The tobacco companies, as The Runaway Jury illustrates, are not responsible, nor do they seek valid legal reform. They profit from the suffering and addiction of millions and seek to place obstacles in the justice system to prevent themselves from being held accountable for their actions.

Grisham further examines how the tobacco corporations work in concert to suppress any legal resistance to their business.