Vitamins Antitrust Litigation

Class Plaintiffs and others have filed lawsuits in this Court and elsewhere in the United States against the Settling Defendants and others. The lawsuits have been consolidated in this Court for pretrial purposes before the Honorable Thomas F. Hogan, Chief Judge, United States District Court. The class actions were described in previous Notices mailed in December 1999, April 2001, July 2001, and October 2002.

On May 15, 2002, after dismissal of the case filed in the District of Columbia against Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd., Class Plaintiffs filed a case against that company and Tanabe Seiyaku Co. Ltd. in the District Court in New Jersey. Those cases have been transferred to the District of Columbia for consolidated pre-trial proceedings. If the Settlement Agreements are approved by the Court, the lawsuit as against Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd. and Tanabe Seiyaku Co., Ltd. in New Jersey will also be finally dismissed.

Class Plaintiffs allege that certain defendants unlawfully agreed to fix, raise, maintain and stabilize the prices of Vitamin Products sold in the United States in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1. Class Plaintiffs claim that, as a result of this alleged pricefixing and other unlawful collusive conduct, they and other members of the Vitamin Products Class paid more for Vitamin Products than they would have paid absent such conduct.

If the Settlement Agreements are approved by the Court, there will be no remaining defendants in these actions.

Read More

Contact us for more information