The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently affirmed a jury verdict and subsequent judgment entered against the defendants in a bid-rigging conspiracy. The jury found the defendants liable for violating federal and state antitrust laws by manipulating public foreclosure auctions through an internet-based internal auction scheme.
The jury also found that the organizer of the bid-rigging conspiracy used pending foreclosures as a pretext to attempt to extort money from two of the groups of plaintiffs. The jury verdict resulted in a $1.2 million judgment plus a permanent injunction and award of attorneys fees.
On appeal, the Fourth Circuit rejected the defendants’ argument that the evidence was insufficient to support the jury’s verdict. It explained that the defendants “only summarily asserted post-verdict that the evidence was insufficient to support the jury’s verdict without pointing to the law and facts entitling them to judgment as a matter of law[.]”
The Court also rejected the defendants’ objections to the jury instructions concerning antitrust damages, noting that they “do not identify the instruction, instructions, or any portions thereof given on this topic to which they object.”
In all, the opinion represents a complete victory for the plaintiffs in the case. The defendants in the case have exhausted their appeals, and remain under a permanent injunction to prevent them from engaging in similar conduct in the future.
The plaintiffs in the case were represent by Dhamian Blue of Blue LLP and Jim White of J.C. White Law Group. Dhamian Blue has been recognized by Business North Carolina magazine as one of North Carolina’s “Legal Elite” in antitrust litigation.
