Diana Uhimov, September 3, 2014. Class-action lawsuits can be a powerful tool for employees and consumers against major corporations, as proven by the massive $7.25 billion Visa and MasterCard antitrust settlement of 2012. A consumer class action is a case where plaintiffs who purchased a product or service from a defendant claim that they suffered damages as a result of fraud, product defect, or other information failure.  The class of plaintiffs in the Visa/MasterCard suit consisted of retailers and individuals alleging the credit-card companies engaged in anticompetitive activity by…

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Diana Uhimov, June 11, 2014. Eastern District Judge Nicholas Garaufis’ decision last month in United States v. American Express held that a plaintiff is not required to establish a defendant’s market power to prove a vertical restraint in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act.  A firm with market power has the ability to influence the price of an item by exercising control over its demand, supply, or both.  The U.S. Department of Justice brought this action against American Express, among other credit card companies, disputing their…

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