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Hausfeld LLP Announces Two Major New Settlements Totaling Over $150 Million in Air Cargo Cartel Case

Dépèche transmise le 7 juin 2011 par Business Wire

Hausfeld LLP Announces Two Major New Settlements Totaling Over $150 Million in Air Cargo Cartel Case

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hausfeld LLP, a global plaintiffs’ law firm dedicated to handling complex and class action litigation, announces that plaintiffs have reached an $89.512 million settlement with British Airways Plc (“BA”) and a $66 million settlement with Lan Airlines, S.A., Lan Cargo, S.A., and Aerolinhas Brasileiras, S.A. (“Lan/ABSA”) in In re Air Cargo Shipping Services Antitrust Litigation (pending in the Eastern District of New York). The airlines have agreed to pay additional amounts for notice costs and will cooperate in the ongoing case against the remaining defendants. Hausfeld LLP serves as Co-Lead Counsel in the case.

Michael Hausfeld, Chairman of Hausfeld LLP, commented:

“These two important settlements, returning over $150 million to claimants, represent yet another excellent result for the US class, which is fast approaching half a billion dollars in recoveries from settling defendants. BA and Lan/ABSA have now taken an important step toward paying damages for their admitted price-fixing conduct. We will continue our efforts to pursue recoveries for the huge number of victims of this cartel both in the US and around the world. It is long overdue that the companies found to have engaged in price-fixing by public enforcement agencies make restitution to all of their victims, everywhere in the world.”

As reflected in the chart below, these are the tenth and eleventh settlements in the case so far, bringing the total recovery to over $430 million, with many other airlines remaining as defendants in the litigation.

Nearly half of the original defendants in the civil action brought by Hausfeld LLP and other law firms have pled guilty to a conspiracy to fix the price of shipping goods by air to and from the United States. The plaintiffs allege that the cartel increased global shipping prices.

Hausfeld LLP’s sister practice in London (Hausfeld & Co LLP) commenced proceedings on behalf of two lead claimants against British Airways in the English High Court on September 18, 2008 (Emerald v. BA). Recently, the Court granted an Order for a further wave of 80 claimants to be added to the Emerald case, with further waves of claimants expected to join the fray shortly. These include several among the Fortune Global 500 and Forbes Global 2000, as well as both the Business Week and Interbrand 100 Best Global Brand. BA has also added all other airlines named in the European Commission’s decision, including Lan, as parties to the proceedings for the purposes of contributing towards BA’s total liabilities.

The new US settlements do not resolve BA’s or Lan’s liabilities in the pending European case.

Hausfeld LLP attorneys working on this case are Michael Hausfeld, Brent Landau, Hilary Scherrer, William Butterfield, and Melinda Coolidge.

About Hausfeld LLP

Hausfeld LLP, led by industry doyen Michael Hausfeld, is widely recognized as one of the leading and best-known claimant law firms in the world. It is at the forefront of numerous innovative legal actions that are expanding the quality and availability of legal recourse for aggrieved individuals and businesses around the world.

The partners of Hausfeld LLP have obtained numerous landmark judgments and settlements for individuals and businesses, and have been champions for the private enforcement of competition and antitrust laws globally for almost four decades.

For further information please visit: www.hausfeldllp.com