Potash Corporation settles antitrust class actions

Client(s) Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan, Inc.

Jones Day defended Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan, Inc. and PCS Sales (USA), Inc. against class actions alleging that they and other potash producers conspired to fix potash prices, to divide markets, to restrict supply, and to fraudulently conceal the conspiracy, all in violation of federal and various state antitrust laws. The eight lawsuits initially filed in 2008 by direct and indirect purchasers in federal courts in Illinois and Minnesota were eventually consolidated as multidistrict litigation in Illinois federal court.

After four years of litigation, which included dismissal of a number of claims, an interlocutory appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, and an en banc hearing before the full court to address the Foreign Trade Antitrust Improvements Act (FTAIA) issues (which concern the extent to which domestic purchaser plaintiffs can claim damages from the alleged ancillary anticompetitive effects in the U.S. of joint venture selling activities in India and China) and Twombly issues, the parties reached an agreement in January 2013 on a global settlement of all direct purchaser and indirect purchaser claims.

In re Potash Antitrust Litigation (No. II), No. 1:08-cv-06910 (N.D. Ill.)