Mastercard wins limitation judgment in retailer interchange fee litigation

Client(s) MasterCard International Inc.

In its ongoing representation of Mastercard International Inc., Jones Day won a Competition Appeal Tribunal judgment on limitation issues in the retailer interchange fee litigation in the United Kingdom. In the litigation, thousands of merchants contended that their claims were not barred by usual limitation rules because the Court of Justice of the European Union's judgment in Case C-267/20 Volvo and DAF Trucks changed the landscape for limitation in competition law claims. The Tribunal rejected that argument, finding that the Volvo judgment did not introduce a 'cessation' or 'continuing breach' requirement into European law, such that limitation could not begin to run on a damages claim until the infringement of competition law had ceased. It also concluded, pursuant to complex Brexit legislation, that even if it had found for the merchants on this point, it would not have followed the Court of Justice's judgment post-Brexit.

Umbrella Interchange Fee Claimants v Umbrella Interchange Fee Defendants [2023] CAT 49