WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal from Illinois smokers who sought reinstatement of a $10.1 billion class-action judgment in a long-running lawsuit against Philip Morris.

The justices did not comment on leaving in place an Illinois Supreme Court ruling in favor of the cigarette-maker. The smokers objected to the participation of state Supreme Court Justice Lloyd Karmeier, who they said benefited from tobacco money in his retention election.

The suit, filed on behalf of hundreds of thousands of Illinois smokers, was one of the nation's first to accuse a tobacco company of consumer fraud. It claimed that Philip Morris deceptively marketed “light” and “low-tar” Marlboro cigarettes as a healthier alternative. The federal government now bars cigarette-makers from labeling their products with such terms.

In other actions by the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday:

The process for challenging invalid patents was upheld, making it easier for companies to fight so-called patent trolls.

The justices were unanimous in backing the legal standard used to cancel patents by a new appeals board at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

The Labor Department was told it must do a better job of explaining why it is changing a long-standing policy on whether certain workers deserve overtime pay.

It was ruled that the European Union can't pursue a lawsuit accusing tobacco giant R.J. Reynolds of taking part in a global money-laundering scheme that sponsored cigarette-smuggling in Europe.

The justices said that the EU has no right to sue in U.S. courts because federal racketeering laws don't allow recovery for injuries occurring outside the United States.