Ford to face new trial over commercial truck dealers’ pricing contracts

[kscarbel]

Automotive News / February 8, 2014

WILMINGTON, Del. (Bloomberg) -- Ford Motor Co. must face a new trial on claims the company violated commercial truck dealers’ pricing contracts in the retrial of a case that previously generated a $2 billion award against the company, a lawyer said.

An Ohio judge concluded jurors were confused when they rejected Ford dealers’ claims the automaker breached sales and service agreements by failing to publish prices for medium and heavy trucks, James Lowe, a lawyer for the truck sellers, said Friday.

Judge Peter Corrigan ordered Ford to face another trial of the claims, Lowe said.

“We are gratified to once again have the chance to show Ford took advantage of the dealers by manipulating agreements to divert their profits to the company,” Lowe said.

Corrigan hasn’t set a new trial date for the dealers’ case, which has already has had two verdicts thrown out. In the first trial in 2011, Corrigan awarded about $2 billion, including about $1.2 billion in interest, to a class of about 3,000 dealers. A state appeals court threw that award out, finding Corrigan improperly excluded evidence that could have helped Ford in the case. In the second trial, an Ohio jury rebuffed the truck sellers’ claims in September.

Ford spokesman Jay Cooney said the company was disappointed with the judge’s decision to grant a new trial and plans to appeal it.

Price publication

“We are confident the appellate courts will reinstate the jury’s verdict, including that Ford did not break the sales and service agreement,” Cooney said.

The dealers sued Ford in 2002, claiming the company broke an agreement to sell trucks at published prices, forcing them to pay more from 1987 to 1998.

The dealers said the agreement required Ford to publish all price concessions that were approved for any dealer. Failing to publish discounts given to some meant the others paid more, according to lawyers for dealers, such as Youngstown, Ohio-based Westgate Ford Truck Sales Inc, which serves as lead plaintiff in the case.

Ford denied committing any breaches or overcharging dealers, contending a program that offered some discounts wasn’t barred by the contract.

http://www.autonews.com/article/20140208/RETAIL07/140209858/ford-to-face-new-trial-over-commercial-truck-dealers-pricing

[Red Horse]

Well this I don't understand- no doubt I think it is fair to say everyone had certain "factory concessions". If Ford (or Mack etc) wanted to penetrate a certain fleet or class of trade, they would be free to grant special pricing to get their trucks in that fleet. Obviously they would not want their other customers or other dealers to have that knowledge. I can't imagine Ford would have been so dumb as to agree to expose themselves to one fixed pricing schedule. Or they might have agreed to a published pricing schedule, but I can't believe they would have given up the right to grant certain concessions.