In re Marine Hose Antitrust Litigation

On March 24, 2008, Chimicles & Tikellis LLP, along with its co-counsel, filed a consolidated class action complaint in the Southern District of Florida on behalf of a class of individuals and entities who, from January 1999 to the present (the "Class Period"), purchased marine hoses and related products directly from Trelleborg Industrie S.A.; Parker ITR srl; Manuli Rubber Industries SpA; Manuli Oil & Marine (U.S.A.), Inc.; Bridgestone Corporation; Bridgestone Industrial Products America, Inc.; Dunlop Oil & Marine Ltd.; Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd.; and/or Parker-Hannifin Corporation (collectively, the "Hose Entity Conspirators"). Also named as defendants in the complaints are PW Consulting (Oil and Marine) Ltd., Peter Whittle, Christian Caleca, Jacques Cognard, Vanni Scodeggio, Francesco Scaglia, Misao Hioki, Bryan Allison, David Brammar and Val Northcutt (together with the Hose Entity Conspirators, "Defendants"). According to the complaint, the Hose Entity Conspirators are the leading manufacturers and/or sellers of marine hoses, and collectively sold hundreds of millions of dollars worth of marine hoses and related products during the Class Period. Marine hoses are flexible rubber hoses that are primarily used to transport oil between ships, terminals, buoys, and offshore tankers.

The complaint alleges that, in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act, the Defendants engaged in a massive global conspiracy to rig bids; fix, raise, maintain, or stabilize prices; and allocate markets for marine hoses and related products during the Class Period. According to the complaint, this conspiracy caused the prices of marine hoses to be artificially inflated, and suppressed competition in the manufacture and sale of marine hoses. The complaint states that the U.S. Department of Justice ("D.O.J.") charged defendant Peter Whittle, owner of defendant PW Consulting (Oil and Marine) Ltd., with criminal violations of the antitrust laws. The complaint claims that Whittle was paid by the other Defendants to act as the "coordinator" of the cartel. The complaint further alleges that the D.O.J. announced the arrests of Christian Caleca, Jacques Cognard, Vanni Scodeggio, Francesco Scaglia, Misao Hioki, Bryan Allison, and David Brammar for their alleged participation in the worldwide conspiracy.

This antitrust class action seeks treble damages, injunctive relief, and attorney's fees and costs. The consolidated class action complaint can be viewed by clicking the attachment below.