Settlement In Catalina Scuba Price Fixing Case

[Scubagolf]

Settlement Reached In Catalina Scuba Diving Case
LOS ANGELES (AP) ―

A settlement has been announced in a case that alleged the attempted price-fixing of scuba diving tours on Santa Catalina Island. The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office says, without admitting liability, John Mello agreed to pay a total of $11,000 in legal and investigative costs, civil penalties and restitution.

Settlement Reached In Catalina Scuba Diving Case - cbs2.com

 

[Teamcasa]

From: Catalina scuba diving price fixing case ends - The Daily Breeze

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office Monday announced the settlement of a case that alleged an attempt to fix the price of scuba diving tours in Avalon.

Without admitting liability, John W. Mello agreed to pay $5,000 in legal and investigative costs, $4,000 in civil penalties and $2,000 in restitution to a competitor, according to the District Attorney;s Office.

Mello is the immediate past owner of Catalina Diver Supply on Catalina Island, officials said.

The case was a "textbook example of attempted price fixing, among the most egregious forms of anti-competitive conduct," said Kathleen Tuttle, deputy- in-charge of the District Attorney's Office's Antitrust Section.

The settlement includes injunctive terms barring Mello from engaging in any conduct involving fixing or attempted fixing of prices in the scuba diving business, soliciting or coercing other business competitors to agree to fix prices and engaging in any acts of unlawful competition, according to the District Attorney's Office.

 

[fnfalman]

Interesting...

 

[drbill]

Personally, I'm not sure I buy all this... I know all of the people involved.

 

[Teamcasa]

A charge of price fixing is easy to make but difficult to prosecute since it usually involves little written evidence.

 

[Scubagolf]

Personally, I'm not sure I buy all this... I know all of the people involved.

This amount of money falls in the category of a "nuisance value" settlement. This is the term that insurance carriers often use for the settlement of cases of dubious or no real value on the merits for a minor amount of cash in exchange for obtaining a dismissal.

 

[drbill]

Hmmm, if I can win that much in a "nuisance suit" against my neighbor for the damage she's caused to my condo, I may be able to fix it all. Gulp... wait a minute... that would make ME a nuisance!

 

[drbill]

Read a new article on this in our local newspaper today and talked to some of the locals in the dive community.

The article focused on the fact that both John Mello while he owned CDS and SCUBA Luv refused to fill tanks for Dive Moore. Dive Moore did not have their own compressor at the time, but does now. Personally, if there was a new competitor in town who expected me to fill their rental tanks for them, I'd decline as well. With one of the dive ops there are other issues (legal) involved as well. I did give Dive Moore several leads on compressors at the time.

As for the issue of price fixing, reportedly related to Discover SCUBA offerings, I have not yet heard anything definitive on that. It is easy for competitors here to talk about their pricing... or for them to just look at the posted prices. Heck, the town is only a mile square and the shops are pretty much within a real city block of one another.

 

[kelpmermaid]

Actually, no one has to walk anywhere. A few clicks around the internet and it's easy to find; I still don't understand.

 

[drbill]

I agree that it seems pretty strange. Of course none of us have seen the video footage that the prosecutor says exists. It might contain something that is more definitive. And of course I'm no legal eagle... so far I've never had to use a lawyer in my life (and had to correct the mistakes that three of them made who were engaged by employers of mine).