ZHENGZHOU, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- A court in central China's Henan Province Tuesday overruled an appeal filed by the family of a smoker who died of a heart attack after an argument with a man who asked him to stop smoking in a lift.

According to the Intermediate People's Court of Zhengzhou, the behavior of the defendant Yang Jun was "lawful" and was an act of "safeguarding public interest."

The court overruled earlier rulings and rejected plaintiff's compensation claim, and asked the plaintiff to pay the litigation costs of more than 14,000 yuan (around 2,180 U.S. dollars).

The family of the elderly smoker claimed more than 400,000 yuan from Yang, after the smoker died of a heart attack following an argument with Yang who asked him to stop smoking in a lift last May.

The smoker's family subsequently sued Yang, claiming the argument had played a role in triggering the heart attack.

In last September, the People's Court of Jinshui District ruled that Yang's behavior did not lead to the death of the smoker but ordered Yang to pay a compensation of 15,000 yuan to the family.

The family appealed against the court's decision to the Intermediate People's Court of Zhengzhou City. The court heard the appeal last November but pronounced the final judgement on Tuesday.