Plaintiffs and defendants in the Antitrust Commission case said they would face a three- to four-week trial starting on January 21, 2025, according to court filings earlier this week.
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The original explosive trustee lawsuit Moehrl is expected to go to trial in January 2025, while the last holdout in the case, Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary HomeServices of America, continues defense, although all other defendants had settled.
On Wednesday, March 27, attorneys representing HomeServices and its subsidiaries HSF Affiliates, BHH Affiliates and Long & Foster Companies noted that the National Association of Realtors has withdrawn its interest in the case following the trade group’s proposed $418 million compensation package. Motion for summary judgment settled with plaintiff March 15 required The court held that the motion and related motions were filed by HomeServices.
Although HomeServices filed a motion for summary judgment in the case at the same time as NAR in December, the company also said at the time that the HomeServices defendants filed the motion together with NAR.
Judge Andrea R. Wood
In the case of March 25 status report Both sides of the case told the court that they would go to trial on Tuesday, January 21, 2025, which would last for 3-4 weeks. The trial will take place in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern District in Chicago before Judge Andrea Wood.
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All in all, HomeServices appears to be firing on all cylinders in its defense, although the company has been careful to keep its options open. When asked if HomeServices planned to settle, HomeServices executive vice president Chris Kelly told Inman, “Scheduling a trial date in the Moore case is a normal and standard procedural step. HomeServices’ position remains unchanged as we are actively pursuing all options.” to resolve potential litigation in which we are involved.”
Moehrl filed the lawsuit in March 2019. Four years later, in March 2023, the case received class certification, sparking debate about the merits and implications of the multibillion-dollar case, with many urging the industry to stop arguing and prepare for what was to come. .
Class certification means potentially millions of home sellers in 20 MLS markets can demand repayment of the $13.7 billion in commissions they paid to buyer’s agents between 2015 and 2020. If it triples automatically, that number could reach $41.1 billion.
On October 31, a smaller, similar case called Sitzer | Jurors found that NAR, Keller Williams, RE/MAX, Anywhere, HomeServices and their subsidiaries conspired to inflate the rates of broker commissions paid by home sellers. Juries awarded $1.78 billion in damages to approximately 500,000 Missouri homeowners. The trial was held in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri before Judge Stephen Baugh.
Burnett, Moehrl named NAR, Anywhere (formerly Realogy), RE/MAX, Keller Williams and HomeServices and their subsidiaries as defendants. Anywhere and RE/MAX settled the two cases before Sitzer | Burnett Trial, for $83.5 million and $55 million, respectively. Keller Williams settled on February 1 for $70 million, and NAR settled on March 15 for $418 million. None of the settlement agreements have received final approval from any court.
The Moehrl case, like many other commission lawsuits, revolves around the NAR Rules (known as the Cooperation Compensation Rule or the Engagement Rule), which require listing brokers to compensate buyer brokers for filing in a real estate broker-affiliated multiple listing service Listing Information. The lawsuit alleges that the rule increases seller costs and violates the Sherman Antitrust Act.
In November, the judge in the case said Moehrl “probably” wouldn’t go to trial until the fourth quarter of 2024, and now it appears that timetable has been pushed back to the first quarter of 2025.
On Friday, February 2, HomeServices submitted a petition Petition for “certiorari” to the U.S. Supreme Court asking the court to review an August ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit affirming a lower district court’s finding that HomeServices cannot enforce an arbitration agreement signed by HomeServices’ seller customers of its franchises vendor because the contract signed by the seller is not directly with HomeServices. The petition is still awaiting a decision.
Send an email to Andrea V. Brambila.
