Plaintiffs alleged a conspiracy on the part of defendants to impose on textile rental (linen supply) customers environmental charges unrelated to the cost of compliance.

NERA was retained by the defendants to analyze class certification. The NERA team, including Senior Vice President Dr. Lauren Stiroh and Special Consultants Dr. Richard Rapp and Dr. Paola Valenti performed studies of markets, competition, and the nature of price determination. In addition, Dr. Rapp testified at a class certification hearing in January.

On 26 July 2004, US District Court for the Southern District of Illinois Judge Michael J. Reagan denied plaintiffs' motion for class certification on grounds that the named plaintiff was not typical of the class and that impact could not be established by common proof. Judge Reagan's decision refers to the complexity of pricing, the diversity of markets and the lack of injury of certain class members, all of which were addressed by NERA's work.