Antitrust and Competition

Class Certification in Antitrust

Class Certification in Antitrust

NERA experts regularly prepare economic analyses that examine whether or not impact (the fact of damage) and damages (the overcharge amount) can be proved on a common, class-wide basis for all members of a proposed class using common evidence, or if instead individual evidence is needed to demonstrate impact and damages customer by customer, or for different groups of customers. The most effective economic evidence regarding class certification will consider both economic theory and empirical tests, and will carefully examine:

  • the facts and allegations specific to the complaint;
  • the characteristics of the products or services at issue;
  • the prices actually paid and the pricing mechanisms for the products or services; and
  • the characteristics of the proposed class and class representatives and the nature of the alleged conspiracy.

When these analyses demonstrate that significant variability exists among the alleged class members, it may not be possible to establish impact (or damages) on a class-wide basis. In such cases, the amount of damages sustained by a customer will need to account for individual factors and cannot be reduced to a single class-wide formula.

NERA's experts also use economic and econometric analyses to identify potential conflicts among members of the purported class. For example, the alleged conspiracy may affect different members of the purported class significantly differently. Alternatively, empirical results from damages models may uncover potential conflicts among the members of the purported class.

Name Title Location Phone Email
Dr. Lawrence Wu President San Francisco +1 415 291 1007 lawrence.wu@nera.com
Bradley A. Heys Senior Managing Director Toronto
New York City
+1 416 868 7312
+1 212 345 3000
brad.heys@nera.com
Dr. Graeme Hunter Senior Managing Director New York City +1 212 345 7724 graeme.hunter@nera.com
Dr. Christine Siegwarth Meyer Senior Managing Director
Chair of NERA's Intellectual Property Practice
White Plains, NY +1 914 448 4119 christine.meyer@nera.com
Grant Saggers Senior Managing Director London +44 20 7659 8802 grant.saggers@nera.com
Dr. Ramsey Shehadeh Senior Managing Director Washington, DC +1 212 345 6089 ramsey.shehadeh@nera.com
Dr. Lauren Stiroh Senior Managing Director White Plains, NY +1 914 448 4143 lauren.stiroh@nera.com
Dr. Will Taylor Managing Director Auckland
Sydney
+64 9 928 3292
+61 2 8864 6535
will.taylor@nera.com
Dr. Nicola Tosini Managing Director Berlin
Brussels
Milan
+49 30 700 1506 70
+32 2 674 88 17
+39 345 3942428
nicola.tosini@nera.com
Dr. Garrett Glasgow Director San Francisco +1 415 291 1029 garrett.glasgow@nera.com
Tilling Lee Director Washington, DC +1 202 466 9268 tilling.lee@nera.com
Bryan Ray Director White Plains, NY +1 914 448 4004 bryan.ray@nera.com
Dr. Kristin Terris Director Los Angeles +1 213 346 3003 kristin.terris@nera.com
Dr. Michael Baye Affiliated Academic Washington, DC +1 202 466 9298 michael.baye.affiliate@nera.com
Prof. Dr. Marc Ivaldi Affiliated Academic Paris
Brussels
London
+33 1 70 75 01 90
+32 2 282 4340
+44 20 7659 8500
marc.ivaldi.affiliate@nera.com
Dr. Andrew Joskow Affiliated Consultant Washington, DC +1 202 466 3510 andrew.joskow.affiliate@nera.com
Dr. Thomas McCarthy Affiliated Consultant Los Angeles +1 213 346 3000 thomas.mccarthy.affiliate@nera.com
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