Lock maker Assa Abloy violating antitrust settlement, US Justice Dept says
03/07/2024 17:58
By Mike Scarcella
July 3 (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department has
accused global lock maker Assa Abloy ASSAb.ST of violating the
terms of a settlement that let it complete a $4.3 billion
acquisition of Spectrum Brands' SPB.N hardware and home
improvement unit last year.
Justice Department lawyers said in a Washington, D.C. court
filing on Tuesday that Sweden’s Assa Abloy was failing to pay a
court-appointed monitor supervising the company’s compliance
with the settlement, which resolved government antitrust claims.
Assa Abloy stopped making payments in February to the
monitor, Hausfeld’s Melinda Coolidge, according to the filing,
which accused the company of reneging on its obligations.
The settlement came last year in a Justice Department
lawsuit seeking to block Assa Abloy’s purchase of assets from
U.S.-based Spectrum, which the government said would lead to
higher prices. The deal, which did not include an admission of
wrongdoing, came in the middle of a trial before U.S. District
Judge Ana Reyes.
Assa Abloy and Coolidge did not immediately respond to
requests for comment. The Justice Department declined to
comment.
Reyes has scheduled a hearing for July 9 on the government's
request for an order forcing Assa Abloy to resume payments.
Assa Abloy makes Yale, August and EMTEK brands, and
Spectrum's division makes the Baldwin and Kwikset brands.
Some U.S. settlements include court-approved monitorships to
supervise and investigate a company's compliance. Coolidge, the
U.S. managing partner of Hausfeld, one of the country’s largest
plaintiffs firms, is charging $920 hourly for her monitor work.
Coolidge in an April letter to Assa Abloy called its
objections to her work "unfounded."
Assa Abloy objected to Coolidge's fees in June, arguing that
its payments would “exceed a jaw-dropping $20 million over the
course of the monitorship.”
The company also asked the court to direct the monitor to
stay within boundaries of the settlement, asserting that
Coolidge had exceeded her authority by proposing to conduct an
industry-wide, five-year study on smart locks.
The Justice Department countered that Assa Abloy was trying
to stop Coolidge from completing a “key part” of her work.
The case is United States v. Assa Abloy and Spectrum Brands,
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, No.
1:22-cv-02791-ACR.
For U.S.: Matthew Huppert and Miranda Isaacs of the Justice
Department
For Assa Abloy: Justin Bernick and Lauren Battaglia of Hogan
Lovells
Read more:
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Assa, Spectrum Brands reach settlement with US on deal
(Reporting by Mike Scarcella)
((Mike.Scarcella@thomsonreuters.com;))