Potash Class Action Settlement Distribution Update: Direct Purchasers

Top Class Actions’s website and social media posts use affiliate links. If you make a purchase using such links, we may receive a commission, but it will not result in any additional charges to you. Please review our Affiliate Link Disclosure for more information.

Direct purchasers who participated in the Potash class action settlement reached last summer can expect to see payments in the mail soon, according to court documents filed May 2.

Settlement Administrator Kurtzman Carson Consultants told the court that it anticipates having a final distribution calculation completed by June 20, which means Potash class action settlement checks for direct purchasers could be mailed out by the end of June, early July.

The payments are part of a class action settlement over allegations that certain Potash suppliers in Canada, the United States, Russia and Belarus violated U.S. antitrust laws by establishing a global cartel that set artificially high prices for — and restricted the supply of — potash sold in the United States between 2003 and 2012.

Potash is a a mineral or chemical salt that contains potassium and is used for several purposes, including its most common use as a fertilizer. Potash is also used in metal plating and production of glass, ceramics, soaps, and animal feed supplements. Potash-based products are also used to melt ice or snow, as water-softeners, and for other uses.

Multiple Potash antitrust class action lawsuits were filed and consolidated into litigation on behalf of direct purchasers and indirect purchasers.

Indirect purchasers had until Sept. 2, 2013 to file a claim for their portion of the Potash antitrust class action settlement. Direct purchasers had until Aug. 2, 2013 to file a claim.

A claims status report for the Potash indirect class action settlement has not been submitted to the court. Class Members are urged to keep checking TopClassActions.com or sign up for our free newsletter for updates. You can also mark this article as a “Favorite” using your free Top Class Actions account to receive notifications when this article is updated.

More information on the Potash indirect class action settlement can be found at the Settlement Administrator’s website: www.PotashIndirectSettlement.com.

Details on the Potash class action settlement for direct purchasers can be found at www.potashantitrust-classaction.com.

The Potash Antitrust Class Action Lawsuit is In re: Potash Antitrust Litigation II or Minn-Chem Inc., et al. v. Agrium Inc., et al, Case No. 08-cv-6910, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois.

UPDATE 8/11/14: Top Class Actions viewers are reporting they received the following email from the Settlement Administrator, indicating that payouts from the Potash class action settlement will be low based on the high rate of claims filed:

“As stated in the court approved plan of allocation, distribution will be made to eligible claimant on a pro rata basis. This means that any payment to an eligible claimant will be proportionate to the amount of purchases of potash or products containing potash that claimant made in comparison to all purchases made by eligible claimants. Pursuant to that court approved plan of allocation, only those claims whose distribution would be above $10 are eligible. Although final calculations have not yet been completed, we anticipate your claim will be below the $10 threshold and you will likely not receive a distribution. Note that we received well over 2 billion dollars in alleged potash purchases.

“For further inquiries on this litigation, feel free to visit our website at PotashIndirectSettlement.com, contact the Potash Antitrust Litigation Helpline at 866-778-9623, or email at info@PotashIndirectSettlement.com.”