In Re: US Foodservice Inc. Pricing Litig.

Plaintiffs alleged that USF engaged in a fraudulent scheme by which it artificially inflated the cost component of its cost-plus billing and then disguised the proceeds of its own inflated billing through the use of purported promotional allowances. At issue on interlocutory appeal was whether the district court abused its discretion in certifying a nationwide class consisting of about 75,000 USF "cost-plus" customers. The court affirmed the district court's certification of the class, concluding that, despite the size of the class and the fact that it implicated the laws of multiple jurisdictions, the district court correctly concluded that both the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), 18 U.S.C. 1961-68, and contract claims were susceptible to generalized proof such that common issues would predominate over individual issues and a class action was superior to other methods of adjudication. View "In Re: US Foodservice Inc. Pricing Litig." on Justia Law