Hagens Berman represents residents of Saipan in a lawsuit alleging Shell and Mobil Oil have restrained fair trade and engaged in price fixing of unleaded gasoline on the island.
Hagens Berman represents residents of Saipan where, according to attorneys, Shell and Mobil Oil have “acted as a cartel in restraint of fair trade and engaged in price fixing” of unleaded gasoline on the island. The case originated on the island of Saipan and affects anyone who purchased unleaded gas at a Shell or Mobil gas station on the island.
GAS PRICE INCREASES ON SAIPAN
The class-action lawsuit states that for years the only two gasoline providers on Saipan “have colluded with each other to keep the price of unleaded fuel artificially high and to avoid competition with each other,” driving up prices for the public, who are forced to patronize these companies. Shell and Mobil controlled the market to the detriment of the public, the lawsuit alleges, through restraints to free competition in business and commercial transactions. The two oil companies are the only two “brands” of motor fuel and petroleum products sold and offered in the market of the island of Saipan. Those affected have purchased fuel from Shell and Mobil for personal, family and/or household use, paying inflated prices due to the companies’ anticompetitive practices.
SHELL AND MOBIL FUEL ANTITRUST
The lawsuit states that throughout the period of price-fixing, Shell and Mobil conspired with each other and agreed to continue to fix prices artificially for unleaded fuel. The two firms change prices of regular unleaded gasoline within hours of each other, at supposedly competing locations, to the tenth of a penny. Price changes take place in lockstep, and change to exactly the same pre-agreed price.
The lawsuit not only seeks repayment to consumers who purchased gasoline at inflated prices, but also seeks to end Mobil and Shell’s antitrust behavior. Defendants are accused of violating the consumer protection laws of the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands, where Saipan is located.
YOUR CONSUMER RIGHTS
The lawsuit would seek reimbursement for the illegal price increases pushed onto residents of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Hagens Berman believes that those who paid high prices for unleaded gasoline due to price-gouging by Shell and Mobil deserve compensation.
TOP ANTITRUST LITIGATION FIRM
Hagens Berman is one of the most successful antitrust litigation law firms in the U.S. and has achieved more than $320 billion in settlements for consumers in lawsuits against food corporations, automakers, big banks and others. The firm has taken on Big Oil in prior cases and has successfully uncovered many instances of illegal price increases in various industries and markets. Your claim will be handled by attorneys experienced in consumer antitrust law.
