August 25, 2006

In a notoriously risible en banc decision, the Third Circuit held 3M liable under an antitrust suit brought by a competitor complaining that 3M undersold it to retailers by charging "too little" for tape through the use of bundling and volume discounts (Jan. 20, Oct. 31). (So nice for a court to step to the defense of consumers by demanding higher prices!) We noted the copycat suits at the time, and one of those cases, Meijer Inc. v. 3M, has settled for $28.8 million, $7.5 million of which goes to the attorneys, who receive over $1600/hour for the attorney and paralegal time spent on a case where 3M was collaterally estopped from defending itself on some of the most damaging allegations. (Shannon P. Duffy, "Judge OKs Settlement of 3M Antitrust Suit for $28.8 Million", Legal Intelligencer, Aug. 24).

Another putative class action, Bradburn Parent/Teacher Store Inc. v. 3M, is close to settlement. And another class action was settled for a $41 million donation to charity plus $7.5 million to the attorneys, where the twenty-eight law firms involved somehow made do with $900+/hour in that case.