In December, MasterCard International sought to disqualify Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi LLP, as reported in the Twin Cities Pioneer Press on Jan 13. The motion also raised questions about which of two groups of attorneys will be named as the lead plaintiffs' counsel for several retailers involved in the multibillion dollar antitrust lawsuits against Visa International and MasterCard. This forced a delay, which was resolved on Jan 27th during the New York disqualification hearing. Instead, it turned into another "price-less" moment for MasterCard.
Our scorecard is at strike two. The first decision against the credit card associations was during the multidistrict litigation venue hearings. The banks sought to have the case heard in Georgia and lost that round too.
These pauses and delays are a reminder that MasterCard will apparently do nearly anything to deflect from arguing the facts behind the illegal price-fixing violations. And for good reason. Without further delays, their planned $2.5 billion IPO could be hampered and clouded by attention from this litigation.
[source: WayTooHigh.com]
