On September 26, 2016, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed a district court’s ruling in favor of the United States Department of Justice which found that American Express violated antitrust laws through its anti-steering rules and instructed the district court to render judgment in favor of American Express.
NPR represents a broad consortium of large retailers and merchants with hundreds of millions of dollars in discount fees paid to American Express. Obviously, this ruling represents a significant setback to those claims. NPR, however, does not give up.
NPR and co-counsel are of the opinion that the Second Circuit’s ruling is fundamentally flawed and that the opinion is vulnerable on further appeal. NPR plans to support the filing of a petition for an en banc rehearing and likewise support pursuing the matter to the United States Supreme Court, if necessary. Further, if the United States is not inclined to pursue its appeal options, there are a number of private litigants NPR will work with to put themselves in a position to challenge the Second Circuit ruling.
NPR partners Jeffrey Angelovich and Michael Angelovich are leading the litigation against American Express.
09-26-16