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.