MDL Docket Created in Ohio for Tire Price-Fixing Conspiracy Cases

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation has created an MDL docket for class action lawsuits accusing tire manufacturers of artificially increasing the cost of new replacement tires for passenger vehicles and engaging in a large-scale price fixing conspiracy.

In a June 7 order, the panel sent the 14 pending actions to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio and tapped Judge Sara Lioi to oversee the litigation.

Plaintiffs allege that the tiremakers “coordinated price increases, including through public communications,” and say their claims are supported by “defendants’ sudden and dramatic parallel price increases, which …