A class of plaintiffs have filed an antitrust action in the Northern District of California captioned Turik et al. v. Expedia Inc. et al., and alleging that online travel reservation firms and hotels have conspired to fix prices for hotel accommodations. The complaint alleges that the so-called “price-match guarantee” is really a means to fix […]
Category Archives: Cartel Activity
Class Alleges Price Fixing on Hotel Accommodations by Travel Reservation Websites
September 17, 2012 – 9:39 am
Farmers May Challenge Filed Rate for Nonfat Dry Milk
September 9, 2012 – 10:53 am
In Carlin et al. v. DairyAmerica Inc. et al., , the Ninth Circuit reversed the lower court and held that the filed-rate doctrine did not bar dairy farmers from challenging a buyers’ coalition that allegedly skewed prices by providing lowball rates to a milk pricing overseer. The decision reinstated a series of cases that in […]
Helicopter Transfer Price Fixing Claim Dismissed
August 17, 2012 – 9:52 am
In Superior Offshore International Inc. v. Bristow Group Inc., the Third Circuit affirmed the dismissal of the plaintiff’s price fixing claims because of a lack of direct evidence of a conspiracy. The case had been related to a DOJ investigation of the off-shore helicopter transport industry, which is used to transport workers to oil rigs. […]
Claims Dismissed in Refrigerant Compressor Price Fixing Case
August 16, 2012 – 12:58 pm
In Refrigerant Compressors Antitrust Litigation, Eastern District of Michigan Judge Sean F. Cox dismissed several state antitrust indirect purchaser claims in multidistrict litigation alleging a price-fixing conspiracy in the refrigerant compressor market. The court found that indirect purchase plaintiffs must have lived in or suffered an injury in a state to bring indirect purchaser claims […]
Credit Card Companies Agree to Settle Merchant Fee Class Action
July 16, 2012 – 4:04 pm
In In re Payment Card Interchange Fee and Merchant Discount Antitrust Litigation, the defendants have agreed to a $7.25 billion settlement of multidistrict litigation being litigated in the Eastern District of New York. Plaintiff merchants filed the 2005 case alleging that the Visa and MasterCard associations and large banks conspired to increase the fees paid […]
Stay Lifted in Multidistrict Automotive Lighting Case
July 2, 2012 – 4:44 pm
In In re: Aftermarket Automotive Lighting Products Antitrust Litigation, Central District of California Judge George H. Wu lifted a stay on multidistrict litigation against automotive lighting manufacturer Eagle Eyes Traffic Industrial Co. Ltd. Although a parallel criminal case is on-going, Judge Wu concluded that the plaintiffs would suffer from additional delay. In 2008, direct purchasers […]
Direct Purchaser Class Certified in Railroad Fuel Surcharge Case
July 2, 2012 – 4:43 pm
In In re: Rail Freight Fuel Surcharge Antitrust Litigation, multi-district litigation, District of Columbia Paul L. Friedman certified a class of direct purchasers who are alleging that several railroad companies fixed shipping prices through an arbitrary fuel surcharge. The class was defined as anyone who purchased “rate-unregulated rail freight transport services” directly from at least […]
U.S. Supreme Court Requires Jury Findings on Facts Supporting Criminal Fines
July 2, 2012 – 4:41 pm
In Southern Union Co. v. U.S., the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed that any fact used to increase a maximum penalty must be proven to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt. That core principal, the court held, applies to criminal fines as well as jail sentences. Until recently, it was assumed that the Department of Justice, […]
En banc Seventh Circuit Revives Potash Case, Interpreting FTAIA as Non-Jurisdictional
July 2, 2012 – 4:37 pm
In Minn-Chem Inc. et al. v. Agrium Inc. et al., the Seventh Circuit reversed a panel decision dismissing a suit against potash producers allegedly involved in a cartel. The en banc panel found that, under the Foreign Trade Antitrust Improvements Act (FTAIA), there was a sufficient connection between the alleged plot involving foreign producers and […]
Arbitration Rejected in Private E-books Case
July 2, 2012 – 4:34 pm
In In re: Electronic Books Antitrust Litigation, multi-district litigation, Southern District of New York Judge Denise Cote rejected publisher Penguin Group’s motion to compel arbitration for plaintiffs who purchased e-books from Amazon or Barnes & Noble, both of which contain arbitration clauses in their purchase agreements. The complaint accuses Penguin and other publishers of fixing […]