Lawyers for automobile purchasers asked a Michigan federal judge to approve a proposed $7.6 million deal to settle claims in multidistrict litigation that an automotive bearings supplier and its Swedish affiliates participated in a price-fixing scheme with manufacturers in the U.S., Japan and Germany.
The settlement, if approved, would resolve allegations that SKF USA, Inc. and its Swedish affiliates unlawfully colluded with other manufacturers to fix the prices of automotive devices including ball bearings, tapered roller bearings, roller bearings, mounted bearings, and parts and components for ball and roller bearings.
SKF has also agreed to provide comprehensive discovery cooperation including interviews, transactional data, and the identities of certain employees and the affected vehicles.
The proposed settlement class includes everyone who has bought or leased a new vehicle in the U.S. since 2000 with an automotive bearing manufactured by JTEKT Corp., Nachi-Fujikoshi Corp., NSK Ltd., Schaeffler AG, AB SKF, NTN Corp. and their affiliates.
The case is In re: Automotive Parts Antitrust Litigation, case number 2:12-md-02311, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
