The legal proceedings related to the bread price-fixing scandal continue to move forward. A year after Canada Bread was fined $50 million, Loblaw and Weston are now close to finalizing a $500 million settlement.
The settlement agreement is subject to the finalization of a formal agreement between the parties and court approval, according to a statement released Thursday by law firm Strosberg Wingfield Sasso LLP. But if it does go through, it would be the largest antitrust settlement in Canadian history.
The plaintiffs accuse several companies, including Loblaw and its parent company Weston, of participating in a 14-year price-fixing conspiracy that led to artificially higher prices for packaged bread in the early 2000s.
With $96 million already paid out to consumers through the Loblaw card program, the actual amount that will need to be paid out is $404 million. That amount, less court-approved expenses, will be redistributed to eligible members, and will end the claims against Loblaw and Weston in this case. More details on the payments that will reach consumers should be available by the end of the year.
Class actions against other companies allegedly involved in price fixing are ongoing. Sobeys, Metro, Walmart Canada and Giant Tiger are targeted, as is Canada Bread, which has already pleaded guilty to four counts of price fixing under the Competition Act.
“It is important to note that the settlement agreement [avec Weston et Loblaw] “provides access to evidence that will be used in the proceedings against the other defendants,” said Jim Orr, a partner at Orr Taylor LLP. “The expectation is that this will result in significant additional monetary recoveries for Canadian consumers.”