Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST NEWS: $528 million settlement proposed in CRT price fixing suit, (Jun 1, 2015)

By Peter Reap, J.D., LL.M.

Samsung SDI, Philips, Panasonic, Hitachi, and Toshiba, have agreed to pay a total of $528 million to settle all claims brought by the indirect purchaser plaintiffs as part of an alleged international conspiracy to fix the prices of Cathode Ray Tubes (CRTs) worldwide, during the period March 1, 1995, through November 25, 2007. The plaintiffs’ motion for preliminary approval of class action settlements with those defendants was filed on May 29.

The plaintiffs, indirect purchasers of CRTs and products containing CRTs, such as televisions and computer monitors, filed their original complaints in various federal courts throughout the country in late 2007 and early 2008. The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation transferred all related indirect purchaser actions to the Northern District of California, where they were consolidated with similar class actions by direct purchaser plaintiffs.

Previously, the plaintiffs entered into settlements with two other defendant manufacturers, Chunghwa Picture Tubes, Ltd., and LG Electronics, Inc. and LG Electronics USA, Inc. for a total of $35 million, bringing the total amount of monetary settlements to the plaintiffs to $563 million. In addition to monetary consideration, all of the proposed settlements contain cooperation provisions that require the settling defendants to provide specified cooperation to the plaintiffs in the prosecution of any continuing litigation. The plaintiffs and class members will release all federal and state-law claims against a settling defendant whose settlement becomes final, “concerning the manufacture, supply, distribution, sales or pricing of CRT Products . . . .” The release does not include claims for product defect, personal injury, or breach of contract.

The proposed settlements are contingent upon the certification by the court of a settlement class, and the plaintiffs request provisional certification of that class. The settlement class includes a “nationwide class” of indirect purchasers of CRT Products seeking injunctive relief, and “statewide damages classes” of indirect purchasers of CRT Products seeking money damages under the laws of 21 states and the District of Columbia.

According to the plaintiffs’ motion, the issue at the preliminary approval stage is whether a proposed settlement is within the range of possible approval to justify publishing notice of the settlement to the class members and scheduling final approval proceedings. The proposed settlements here were reached after extensive arm’s-length negotiations between experienced and informed counsel, and easily meet the standards for preliminary approval. Notice to class members will be accomplished by a comprehensive notice program that includes direct mail and email notice to millions of corporations and individual consumers, as well as published notice in newspapers, magazines and online, it was noted.

For these reasons, the plaintiffs contend that they have met all of the requirements for preliminary approval, and respectfully request that the court enter an order: (i) certifying the

settlement class; (ii) granting preliminary approval of the proposed settlements; (iii) preliminarily approving the proposed plan of distribution and proposed claim form; (iv) approving the notice program as complying with due process and Rule 23; (v) setting a schedule for a final approval hearing; and (vi) establishing a schedule for hearing any motions for an award of attorney fees, litigation expenses, and incentive awards for the named plaintiffs.

The case is Master File No. CV-07-5944-SC.

Attorneys: Mario N. Alioto (Trump, Alioto, Trump & Prescott LLP) for Indirect Purchaser Plaintiffs.

Companies: Samsung SDI Co., Ltd.; Philips; Panasonic Corporation; Hitachi Displays, Ltd.; Toshiba Corporation; LG Electronics, Inc.; LG Electronics USA, Inc.; Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.; Chunghwa Picture Tubes, Ltd.

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