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Comcast cable TV subscribers will be able to seek recertification of a proposed class action lawsuit accusing Comcast Corp. of monopolizing the Philadelphia market, after a federal judge there denied the cable company’s motion to strike their bid. The original case, Behrend v. Comcast Corp., was denied certification by the U.S. Supreme Court in March 2013.
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge John R. Padova ruled that even though the Supreme Court had already ruled against the putative plaintiffs in Behrend v. Comcast, they could make another attempt to amend their complaint provided that their questions do not involve issues the Supreme Court had already decided in reversing the initial class certification.
To do so, the class action attorneys had to re-work expert analysis. Most legal experts had seen the Supreme Court’s Behrend decision as requiring plaintiffs to demonstrate that damages could be calculated for the entire class as a question of fact to be demonstrated to a jury. In the case of Behrend, the antitrust class action lawsuit alleged four different theories, and an expert had calculated damages based on all four theories.
Since the district court judge had ruled that only one was viable, the Supreme Court ruled that the plaintiffs had not satisfied predominance and evidentiary proof requirements because the estimates did not apply to the single theory, referred to as “overbuilders.” However, Judge Padova decided that did not limit him from potentially certifying a new class that had a more specific model for potential damages.
The original case, which has bounced around the court system for years, alleges that Comcast engaged in anti-competitive practices specifically in the Philadelphia market. Plaintiffs allege that Comcast obtained facilities and equipment in areas where it had a large number of customers in exchange for giving other companies the same in markets where it had struggled to gain a foothold. The result, according to the antirust class action lawsuit, was artificially higher prices for subscribers.
Judge Padova decided that the class action lawsuit was sufficiently separate because of the change in damages model. The denial of Comcast’s motion to dismiss notes that “based on the Third Circuit’s law of mandate authorities, we find that the Supreme Court’s mandate in Comcast Corp. does not preclude a new motion on behalf of the Plaintiffs for certification of a narrowed class based on a revised antitrust impact analysis.”
Padova also cited other case law that provided similar explanations for how it would be possible to maintain a class action certification even if the Supreme Court reversed certain decisions of lower courts.
The plaintiffs are represented by Barry Barnett of Susman Godfrey LLP; David Woodward and Jessica N. Servais of Heins Mills & Olson PLC; Joseph Goldberg of Freedman Boyd Hollander Goldberg Urias & Ward PA; and Anthony J. Bolognese of Bolognese & Associates LLC.
The Comcast Monopoly Class Action Lawsuit is Stanford Glaberson, et al. v. Comcast Corp., Case No. 03-cv-06604, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
UPDATE: On Oct. 28, 2014, the plaintiff submitted a motion asking a Pennsylvania federal judge to approve Comcast’s proposed $50 million class action settlement with a Class of Philadelphia-area Comcast subscribers.
UPDATE 2: Instructions on how to file a claim for the Comcast class action settlement are now available! Click here or visit www.CableSettlement.com for details.
UPDATE 3: A judge gave final approval to the Philadelphia Comcast monopoly class action settlement on Sept. 22, 2015.
UPDATE 4: A Class Member filed an appeal to the Comcast monopoly class action settlement on Oct. 21, 2015.
UPDATE 5: On Feb. 23, 2016, according to our readers, Class Members who submitted timely and valid claims for the Comcast settlement began receiving checks worth as much as $15.
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6 thoughts onRevised Comcast Class Action Survives Early Dismissal Bid
UPDATE 5: On Feb. 23, 2016, according to our readers, Class Members who submitted timely and valid claims for the Comcast settlement began receiving checks worth as much as $15.
UPDATE 4: A Class Member filed an appeal to the Comcast monopoly class action settlement on Oct. 21, 2015.
UPDATE 3: A judge gave final approval to the Philadelphia Comcast monopoly class action settlement on Sept. 22, 2015.
UPDATE 2: Instructions on how to file a claim for the Comcast class action settlement are now available! Click here or visit http://www.CableSettlement.com for details.
UPDATE: On Oct. 28, 2014, the plaintiff submitted a motion asking a Pennsylvania federal judge to approve Comcast’s proposed $50 million class action settlement with a Class of Philadelphia-area Comcast subscribers.
they should be sued for over charging and end of contract