Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. et al. v. Visa U.S.A. Inc. and MasterCard International Incorporated (a/k/a In re Visa Check/MasterMoney Antitrust Litigation)

Constantine Cannon was lead counsel for the plaintiffs in this antitrust class action against Visa and MasterCard, on behalf of the more than five million retailers in the United States that accept Visa and MasterCard credit and debit cards. The firm secured a record-breaking settlement for its clients, consisting of $3.05 billion in payments from Visa and MasterCard along with reductions of fees to retailers valued by the courts at between $25 and $87 billion. The firm filed the lawsuit on behalf of its clients Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., The Limited, Inc., and other retailers as well as three retail trade associations. These retailers contended that Visa and MasterCard attempted to monopolize the debit card market by tying merchant acceptance of debit cards to credit cards and other anticompetitive conduct. Constantine Cannon has concluded the claims administration and distribution phase of the class settlement, with more than 99% of the funds (net of expenses) being disbursed to merchants, and a cy pres donation of the approximate $1.75 million remainder going to the American Antitrust Institute, Consumers Union, and U.S. PIRG.