Peter T. Leach, Senior Editor | Sep 14, 2012 12:44PM EDT
Kuehne + Nagel said it has entered into an agreement to settle a U.S. class-action lawsuit alleging anticompetitive practices in relation to certain surcharges for freight forwarding services.
The lawsuit by a group of shippers, which was first filed against K+N and eight other global logistics providers in 2008 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, sought civil damages for conduct previously investigated by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Under the class-action settlement, which is subject to U.S. court approval, K+N will pay $28 million, and also assign any proceeds it receives from a pending class action against airlines.
“With this settlement we will be able to finally conclude the painful litigation in the United States related to past antitrust allegations – already in November 2011 the respective United States District Court approved the plea agreement between Kuehne + Nagel and the US Department of Justice,” said Karl Gernandt, chairman of Kuehne + Nagel International.
Contact Peter T. Leach at pleach@joc.com. Follow him on Twitter @petertleach.
