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Asia airlines receive final bill to settle cargo price-fixing suit from US court
BROOKLYN US District Judge Brian Cogan has given final approval to US$190 million worth of settlements in litigation over customer claims that airlines conspired to raise the price for cargo shipments, releasing Nippon Cargo Airlines, EVA Airways and Asiana Airlines from the decade-old litigation.
The approval leaves pending settlements with Polar Air Cargo and Air China of $100 million and $50 million, respectively, in the queue, reported Law 360.
Two remaining defendants, Air India and Air New Zealand, were still on track for a September bench trial, Judge Cogan said.
"We think we got the last possible dollar that we could," plaintiffs' counsel Howard Sedran of Levin Fishbein Sedran & Berman told the judge. Nippon Cargo was to pay $36 million, EVA was to pay $99 million and Asiana Airlines was to pay $55 million.
Judge Cogan called the deals a "no-brainer" but warned the plaintiffs' lawyers not to come back later with a request for massive fees. He said the plaintiffs' lawyers were taking a risk by not baking a fee percentage into the settlement agreements.
"There is some number that might give me pause," Judge Cogan said. Sedran assured Judge Cogan that the number would be in line with other settlements, likely in the 25 per cent range.
The multidistrict litigation dates to 2006, when consumers brought more than 90 lawsuits against more than two dozen airlines after the US Department of Justice and the European Commission began investigating the air freight industry.
According to the DOJ, the conspirators used meetings, conversations and other communications to determine the rates the airlines should charge for various routes.
The two holdout defendants were on track for a trial to begin September 12. Judge Cogan hinted that he would consider an advisory jury if the proceedings get that far.
Korean Air Lines' $115 million settlement tops the list as the largest deal to date.
The approval leaves pending settlements with Polar Air Cargo and Air China of $100 million and $50 million, respectively, in the queue, reported Law 360.
Two remaining defendants, Air India and Air New Zealand, were still on track for a September bench trial, Judge Cogan said.
"We think we got the last possible dollar that we could," plaintiffs' counsel Howard Sedran of Levin Fishbein Sedran & Berman told the judge. Nippon Cargo was to pay $36 million, EVA was to pay $99 million and Asiana Airlines was to pay $55 million.
Judge Cogan called the deals a "no-brainer" but warned the plaintiffs' lawyers not to come back later with a request for massive fees. He said the plaintiffs' lawyers were taking a risk by not baking a fee percentage into the settlement agreements.
"There is some number that might give me pause," Judge Cogan said. Sedran assured Judge Cogan that the number would be in line with other settlements, likely in the 25 per cent range.
The multidistrict litigation dates to 2006, when consumers brought more than 90 lawsuits against more than two dozen airlines after the US Department of Justice and the European Commission began investigating the air freight industry.
According to the DOJ, the conspirators used meetings, conversations and other communications to determine the rates the airlines should charge for various routes.
The two holdout defendants were on track for a trial to begin September 12. Judge Cogan hinted that he would consider an advisory jury if the proceedings get that far.
Korean Air Lines' $115 million settlement tops the list as the largest deal to date.
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