FedEx Loses Bid to Shield Papers in Overbilling Lawsuit - Bloomberg
FedEx Corp. (FDX) lost a bid to shield some corporate documents from public disclosure by lawyers suing two units of the package delivery company for knowingly overbilling customers for commercial deliveries.
The ruling today by U.S. Magistrate Judge Charmiane Claxton in Memphis, Tennessee, came in a 2011 lawsuit filed by two law firms -- one in California, the other in Georgia -- claiming the company has been intentionally charging higher residential rates for deliveries made to unmistakably commercial recipients. The suit could be worth tens of millions of dollars to the plaintiffs.
FedEx has denied the overcharging allegations and said customers can avail themselves of a procedure for challenging the charges. Company attorney Justin Ross opposed the lawyers’ request, telling the judge that with only one major U.S. competitor, United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS), any disclosures can potentially harm FedEx.
“Every little thing that you can get on us is a competitive advantage,” Ross said.
FedEx Corp. (FDX) lost a bid to shield some corporate documents from public disclosure by lawyers suing two units of the package delivery company for knowingly overbilling customers for commercial deliveries.
The ruling today by U.S. Magistrate Judge Charmiane Claxton in Memphis, Tennessee, came in a 2011 lawsuit filed by two law firms -- one in California, the other in Georgia -- claiming the company has been intentionally charging higher residential rates for deliveries made to unmistakably commercial recipients. The suit could be worth tens of millions of dollars to the plaintiffs.
FedEx has denied the overcharging allegations and said customers can avail themselves of a procedure for challenging the charges. Company attorney Justin Ross opposed the lawyers’ request, telling the judge that with only one major U.S. competitor, United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS), any disclosures can potentially harm FedEx.
“Every little thing that you can get on us is a competitive advantage,” Ross said.
