U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick
A federal judge has dismissed several claims Louisiana real estate professionals have leveled against Realtor associations in a lawsuit alleging anticompetitive practices, but the lead plaintiff has vowed to file an amended complaint by mid-April.
Judge Shelly D. Dick of the Middle District of Louisiana decided on March 25 that certain claims against the defendants, including the Greater Baton Rouge Association of Realtors (GBRAR), New Orleans Metropolitan Association of Realtors, Louisiana Realtors and the National Association of Realtors, would be dismissed.
The original lawsuit was filed in January of last year by lead plaintiff Carla DeYoung, a real estate broker in Walker, and five other real estate professionals. It argued that the practice of multiple Realtor groups to require membership in three associations as a condition to access Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data limited competition in the industry and harmed consumers.
The original lawsuit sought $10 million in treble damages for harm caused by the defendants’ alleged antitrust practices, including violations of the Sherman Antitrust Act, Clayton Act, Federal Trade Commission Act and Louisiana antitrust law.
Only the plaintiffs’ claims under the Clayton Act, under Section 2 of the Sherman Act and under the First Amendment were dismissed with prejudice, meaning they cannot be filed again. And the plaintiffs’ claims under Section 1 of the Sherman Act and under the Fair Housing Act, as they pertain to defendant Kenneth Damann, GBAR’s executive vice president, were dismissed without prejudice.
“We can amend our complaint, which we plan to do,” DeYoung told the Louisiana Record. "... They didn't get this giant win that is across the news media. We will be providing more evidence for our case, as we are being allowed to.”
DeYoung and other plaintiffs are conducting the lawsuit on a pro se basis, meaning without an attorney.
“It's hard to find an attorney to go up against the largest trade organization in the United States,” she said. “There is a lot of support behind us from people who work in our industry.”
The amended complaint, which must be submitted to the court within 21 days of the judge’s decision, will be filed against the same defendants, according to DeYoung.
A spokesperson for the National Association of Realtors (NAR) said the organization was pleased that the federal court dismissed many of the claims in the lawsuit.
“As we have previously stated, NAR stands by the pro-competitive, pro-consumer local broker marketplaces, which local associations may choose to provide as a member benefit,” the spokesperson told the Record in an email. “Each local MLS sets its own requirements for determining access to the platform and for governing participants’ conduct on the platforms."
The lawsuit alleged that NAR had a history of antitrust violations and faced criticism over extravagant spending and sexual harassment allegations. And the legal action also said the plaintiffs were dealing with “anxiety, stress and emotional turmoil” due to defendant conduct that led to reputational harm.
In making her decision, Dick affirmed the conclusions in a report authored by a U.S. magistrate judge, Erin Wilder-Doomes.
“Though plaintiffs assert many causes of action, plaintiffs fail to assert antitrust injury or an adequate market, and plaintiffs’ antitrust claims do not plausibly plead a claim upon which relief can be granted,” Wilder-Doomes said in her recommendations. “Additionally, plaintiffs’ fail to state a plausible claim under the Fair Housing Act. …”
