Pearson, Simon & Warshaw, LLP has filed a lawsuit on behalf of Gage's
Fertilizer & Grain, Inc. alleging that the major suppliers of potash,
including Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan, Mosaic Company, Agrium Inc.,
JSC Uralkali, JSC Silvinit, International Potash Company and Belarusian
Potash Company, conspired to fix, raise, maintain and stabilize the price
of potash sold in the United States from 2003 to the present. The complaint,
filed in federal court in the Northern District of Illinois on September
11, 2008, alleges that the defendants, who control approximately 70% of
the potash market, violated federal antitrust law and seeks certification
of a class of direct purchasers of potash, damages in an amount to be
determined and injunctive relief.
On June 27, 2012, the United States Court of the Appeals for the Seventh
Circuit, sitting
en banc, issued an
opinion affirming the District Court's denial of defendants' motion to
dismiss the complaint. Pearson, Simon & Warshaw, LLP partner
Bruce L. Simon successfully presented oral argument to the Court of Appeals
which lead to this favorable result for the plaintiffs and putative class.
The
opinion is available for review:
Potash Seventh Circuit Opinion
Settlements
On June 6, 2003, the Court granted preliminary approval to a $10 million
settlement with defendants JSC Uralkali and JSC Silvinit.
On January 30, 2013 the Court granted preliminary approval of a $80 million
settlement with the remaining defendants Agrium, Inc., Agrium U.S., Inc.,
The Mosaic Company, n/k/a MOS Holdings, Inc. and Mosaic Crop Nutrition,
LLC, Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. and PCS Sales (USA) Inc.
A fairness hearing has been set for June 12, 2013. At that time
the Court will decide whether the settlements should be approved.
For more information about the settlements, to obtain court documents,
or register online, please visit the settlement website,
http://www.potashantitrust-classaction.com.
If you would like to discuss this case with Pearson, Simon & Warshaw, please
contact us.