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Senate Study Bill 1188

Bill Text

PAG LIN
  1  1    Section 1.  Section 553.12, Code 2001, is amended to read
  1  2 as follows:
  1  3    553.12  REMEDIES.
  1  4    1.  The state or a person who is injured or threatened with
  1  5 injury by conduct prohibited under this chapter may bring suit
  1  6 to:
  1  7    1. a.  Prevent To prevent or restrain conduct prohibited
  1  8 under this chapter and remove the conduct's effect by
  1  9 injunction, divestiture, divorcement, dissolution of domestic
  1 10 enterprises right to do business in this state, compelling the
  1 11 forfeiture or restraint of the issuance of a certificate of
  1 12 incorporation, permit to transact business, license, or
  1 13 franchise, or granting other equitable relief. The state may
  1 14 bring suit under this section without posting bond.
  1 15    2. b.  Recover To recover three times the actual damages
  1 16 resulting from conduct prohibited under this chapter, and the
  1 17 cost of suit, including, but not limited to, reasonable
  1 18 attorney fees.
  1 19    2.  The right of the state or person to bring an action
  1 20 under this chapter and be awarded the relief described in this
  1 21 section shall not be denied on the ground that the state or
  1 22 the person is an indirect purchaser.  Provided, however, that
  1 23 in any case in which claims are asserted against a defendant
  1 24 by both direct and indirect purchasers, the court shall take
  1 25 all steps necessary to avoid duplicate liability for the same
  1 26 injury.
  1 27    3.  Recover, at the court's discretion, exemplary damages
  1 28 which do not exceed twice the actual damages awarded under
  1 29 subsection 2, from a person other than a city or county or
  1 30 legal entity created by a city or county, if:
  1 31    a.  The trier of fact determines that the prohibited
  1 32 conduct is willful or flagrant; and,
  1 33    b.  The person bringing suit is not the state.
  1 34    4.  Recover the necessary costs of bringing suit, including
  1 35 a reasonable attorney fee. However, the state may not recover
  2  1 any attorney fee.
  2  2    3.  The attorney general may bring a civil action in the
  2  3 name of the state, as parens patriae on behalf of persons
  2  4 residing in the state, to secure monetary relief for injury to
  2  5 property directly or indirectly sustained by those persons
  2  6 because of any violation of this chapter.  Available remedies
  2  7 shall include those described in subsection 1, paragraph "b".
  2  8 To the extent practical, monetary relief under this subsection
  2  9 shall be distributed to injured parties in proportion to their
  2 10 losses.  If the cost of administering reimbursement outweighs
  2 11 the benefit to the person or if the person cannot be located
  2 12 through reasonable efforts, the court may order disgorgement
  2 13 of moneys or property by awarding the moneys or property to
  2 14 the state to be used by the attorney general for the
  2 15 administration and implementation of this section.
  2 16    a.  The court shall exclude from the amount of monetary
  2 17 relief awarded in the action any amount that duplicates
  2 18 amounts which have been previously awarded for the same injury
  2 19 or which are allocable to persons who have excluded their
  2 20 claims pursuant to paragraph "c".
  2 21    b.  If notice of the pendency of the parens patriae action
  2 22 is required, the attorney general shall, at such times, in the
  2 23 manner, and with such content as the court may direct, cause
  2 24 notice to be given by publication.  If the court finds that
  2 25 notice given solely by publication would deny due process of
  2 26 law to any person, the court may direct further notice be
  2 27 given according to the circumstances of the case.
  2 28    c.  Any person on whose behalf an action is brought under
  2 29 this subsection may elect to exclude from adjudication the
  2 30 portion of the attorney general's claim for monetary relief
  2 31 attributable to the person by filing notice of such election
  2 32 with the court within the time period specified in the notice
  2 33 described in paragraph "b".  Any person failing to give notice
  2 34 shall be barred during the pendency of the action from
  2 35 commencing an action in the person's own name for the injury
  3  1 alleged in the action, and the final judgment in the action
  3  2 shall be res judicata as to any such claim.
  3  3    Sec. 2.  Section 553.13, Code 2001, is amended to read as
  3  4 follows:
  3  5    553.13  CIVIL PENALTY.
  3  6    In addition to suit under section 553.12, the state may
  3  7 bring suit to the remedies provided in section 553.12, the
  3  8 court may, in an action brought by the state, assess a civil
  3  9 penalty against an enterprise whose conduct is prohibited
  3 10 under this chapter.  The suit may be tried to the jury and the
  3 11 civil penalty provided for in this section shall be imposed by
  3 12 the court.  The civil penalty assessed shall not exceed ten
  3 13 percent of the total value of the specific commodities by
  3 14 their commodity brand, make, and size or of services either of
  3 15 which were the subject of the prohibited conduct sold in the
  3 16 relevant market in this state by the enterprise purchased by
  3 17 persons of this state in each year in which this conduct
  3 18 occurred, but this penalty shall not exceed one hundred fifty
  3 19 thousand dollars. In computing this penalty, only the four
  3 20 most recent years in which the prohibited conduct occurred, as
  3 21 of commencement of suit under this section, shall be used in
  3 22 the computation.
  3 23    Sec. 3.  Section 553.15, Code 2001, is repealed.  
  3 24                           EXPLANATION 
  3 25    This bill amends Code section 553.12 to permit indirect
  3 26 purchasers to recover and all purchasers to recover three
  3 27 times the actual damages and the cost of suit, including, but
  3 28 not limited to, reasonable attorney fees for overcharges
  3 29 passed along to them by intermediate buyers of products or
  3 30 services.  Current law allows only those who purchase directly
  3 31 from an alleged antitrust violator to recover damages.
  3 32    The bill also allows the attorney general to bring a civil
  3 33 action, on behalf of persons residing in the state, for injury
  3 34 to property directly or indirectly sustained by those persons
  3 35 because of any violation of the Iowa competition law.
  4  1    The bill further repeals Code section 553.15, which
  4  2 requires plaintiffs to choose between pursuing civil or
  4  3 criminal remedies.  
  4  4 LSB 1242DP 79
  4  5 rh/gg/8
     

Text: SSB01187                          Text: SSB01189
Text: SSB01100 - SSB01199               Text: SSB Index
Bills and Amendments: General Index     Bill History: General Index

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