Court favorably cites Dr. Phillip Johnson’s testimony in certifying class of CRT buyers.

A California judge has certified a class of direct purchasers who bought cathode ray tubes from Irico and other companies that were accused of price-fixing. U.S. District Judge Jon Tigar found that the common issue of harm from the fixed prices outweighs the individual issues. Irico argued the class was “atypical and inadequate” because of the varying purchase quantities but the judge found that the expert analysis showed classwide damages and the impact of the price-fixing on all of Irico’s products.

Irico, the only remaining defendant in the antitrust case, argued it was immune from U.S. antitrust claims because it was owned by the Chinese government. But the appeal was dropped in 2020 and the case went back to the California district court. Judge Tigar’s order allows the direct purchasers to pursue a class action against all who bought cathode ray tubes directly from Irico or its co-conspirators between March 1995 and November 2007.

Testimony by Managing Director Phillip Johnson was cited by the Court in the recent certification of a class of those who purchased CRTs. Dr. Johnson’s testimony on classwide impact and damages resulting from collusion in the CRT industry was cited by the Court, which stated: “the Court agrees with DPPs that Johnson’s expert analysis is capable of demonstrating antitrust impact and damages on a classwide basis.

Read the Law360 coverage here >.

Read the class certification order here >.