Contingencies (MSA and Other State Settlement Agreements) (Details)		9 Months Ended	12 Months Ended	25 Months Ended
	Dec. 30, 2015 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2016 USD ($) sponsorship	Dec. 31, 2015 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 1998 USD ($) state
Health Care Cost Recovery Actions
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Number of states with settled litigation | state				46
Number of brand name sponsorships allowed | sponsorship		1
Brand name sponsorship period		12 months
Annual payment requirement				$ 9,000,000,000
Liggett
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Number of states with settled litigation | state				45
Liggett | Health Care Cost Recovery Actions
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Estimated litigation liability		$ 0
Percentage of cigarettes sales exceeds market share exemption		1.65%
Vector Tobacco | Health Care Cost Recovery Actions
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Estimated litigation liability		$ 0
Percentage of cigarettes sales exceeds market share exemption		0.28%
Liggett and Vector Tobacco | Health Care Cost Recovery Actions
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Annual payment requirement			$ 115,000,000
Payments for legal settlements	$ 100,000,000
Cigarettes | Sales Revenue | Liggett and Vector Tobacco
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Concentration risk percentage			3.30%