Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST NEWS: Ocean shipping purchasers seek preliminary approval of $50M settlement in price fixing action, (Feb 9, 2016)

By Linda O’Brien, J.D., LL.M.

Air China has agreed to pay $50 million to settle allegations in multi-district litigation that the company conspired with other airlines to fix the prices of air freight shipping services, according to the plaintiffs’ motion for preliminary approval of the settlement filed in the federal district court in Brooklyn, New York (In re Air Cargo Shipping Services Antitrust Litigation, Case No. 06-MD-1775).

In a separate motion, the plaintiffs are requesting final approval of a settlement with Asiana Airlines, reached in October 2014. Pursuant to the terms of the settlement, Asiana will pay a total of $55 million, plus an additional $200,000 for notice and administration costs.

In 2006, direct purchasers of air freight shipping services filed a series of class action suits against Air China Airlines, Asiana Airlines, and other airlines, alleging that the air freight carriers conspired to unlawfully fix the prices of air freight shipping services worldwide, including cargo shipments to and from the United States by concertedly levying artificially inflated surcharges. In January 2016, Polar Air Cargo and its parent company, Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, agreed to pay $100 million to settle allegations in the multi-district litigation.

According to an announcement by plaintiffs’ class counsel Robins Kaplan LLP, the settlement with Air China, Asiana Airlines, and Polar Air Cargo bring the plaintiffs’ total recoveries to almost $1.2 billion.

A trial against the remaining defendants—Air India and Air New Zealand—is scheduled to begin in September 2016.

Attorneys: Robert N. Kaplan (Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer LLP), Hollis Salzman (Robins Kaplan LLP), Michael D. Hausfeld (Hausfeld LLP), and Howard J. Sedran (Levin, Fishbein, Sedran & Berman) for the plaintiffs.

Companies: Air China Limited; Asiana Airlines, Inc.

News: Antitrust