trapstir
November 14th, 2002, 02:17 PM
This was from March of this year, but interesting reading!
Los Angeles Judge Orders DirecTV to Cease Communications With Dealers; Class Action Alleges Company Used Accounting Schemes to Withhold Payments.
Author/s:
Issue: March 1, 2002
LOS ANGELES -- The following was released today by Baron & Budd:
Superior Court Judge Victoria Chaney yesterday entered a temporary restraining order prohibiting DirecTV and its parent company, Hughes Electronics Corporation , from engaging in certain conduct with DirecTV dealers until the court holds a preliminary injunction hearing on March 8.
The order prohibits DirecTV from communicating with its dealers regarding "amendments to the sales agency agreements or ... altering or modifying or enforcing purported alterations or modifications of the sales agency agreements" until the hearing.
The TRO was entered in a lawsuit, filed last October, which alleges that DirecTV is withholding compensation from present and former DirecTV dealers by using accounting methods designed to underpay and overcharge the dealers. More than 11,000 DirecTV dealers are affected, says Allen M. Stewart, counsel to the plaintiffs and a shareholder in Baron & Budd.
During the TRO hearing, Judge Chaney expressed concern about the tone of DirecTV's recent communications with its dealers, stating that the communications "might be seen as coercive," says Stewart. (A copy of the transcript is available.)
Stewart says DirecTV recently gave dealers an ultimatum: either sign an amended agreement, which negatively affected dealers' rights, or face termination. DirecTV gave dealers until March 4 to sign the agreement, he says.
"DirecTV has knowingly and systematically driven independent DirecTV dealers out of business by unilaterally changing the payment terms of the agreement with a take-it-or-leave-it approach," Stewart says. "DirecTV continually pressured the dealers to either take a bad deal or be terminated as a dealer."
The lawsuit alleges that DirecTV, for whom the dealers acquired DirecTV subscribers, agreed to pay the dealers commissions on the new subscriber installations, as well as residual monthly income based on the subscribers' monthly payments. The plaintiffs allege that DirecTV is withholding past and present dealers' commissions and residual payments and seeks more than $300 million in damages.
In addition to Stewart (astewart@baronbudd.com ), the plaintiffs are represented by Brian C. Lysaght, O'Neill, Lysaght & Sun; and Lewis T. LeClair, McKool Smith.
MAKE YOUR OPINION COUNT - Click Here
http://tbutton.prnewswire.com/prn/11690X15361407
Contact: Amy Hunt of Androvett Legal Media, +1-800-559-4534, or amy@legalpr.com , for Baron & Budd
COPYRIGHT 2002 PR Newswire Association, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2002 Gale Group
Los Angeles Judge Orders DirecTV to Cease Communications With Dealers; Class Action Alleges Company Used Accounting Schemes to Withhold Payments.
Author/s:
Issue: March 1, 2002
LOS ANGELES -- The following was released today by Baron & Budd:
Superior Court Judge Victoria Chaney yesterday entered a temporary restraining order prohibiting DirecTV and its parent company, Hughes Electronics Corporation , from engaging in certain conduct with DirecTV dealers until the court holds a preliminary injunction hearing on March 8.
The order prohibits DirecTV from communicating with its dealers regarding "amendments to the sales agency agreements or ... altering or modifying or enforcing purported alterations or modifications of the sales agency agreements" until the hearing.
The TRO was entered in a lawsuit, filed last October, which alleges that DirecTV is withholding compensation from present and former DirecTV dealers by using accounting methods designed to underpay and overcharge the dealers. More than 11,000 DirecTV dealers are affected, says Allen M. Stewart, counsel to the plaintiffs and a shareholder in Baron & Budd.
During the TRO hearing, Judge Chaney expressed concern about the tone of DirecTV's recent communications with its dealers, stating that the communications "might be seen as coercive," says Stewart. (A copy of the transcript is available.)
Stewart says DirecTV recently gave dealers an ultimatum: either sign an amended agreement, which negatively affected dealers' rights, or face termination. DirecTV gave dealers until March 4 to sign the agreement, he says.
"DirecTV has knowingly and systematically driven independent DirecTV dealers out of business by unilaterally changing the payment terms of the agreement with a take-it-or-leave-it approach," Stewart says. "DirecTV continually pressured the dealers to either take a bad deal or be terminated as a dealer."
The lawsuit alleges that DirecTV, for whom the dealers acquired DirecTV subscribers, agreed to pay the dealers commissions on the new subscriber installations, as well as residual monthly income based on the subscribers' monthly payments. The plaintiffs allege that DirecTV is withholding past and present dealers' commissions and residual payments and seeks more than $300 million in damages.
In addition to Stewart (astewart@baronbudd.com ), the plaintiffs are represented by Brian C. Lysaght, O'Neill, Lysaght & Sun; and Lewis T. LeClair, McKool Smith.
MAKE YOUR OPINION COUNT - Click Here
http://tbutton.prnewswire.com/prn/11690X15361407
Contact: Amy Hunt of Androvett Legal Media, +1-800-559-4534, or amy@legalpr.com , for Baron & Budd
COPYRIGHT 2002 PR Newswire Association, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2002 Gale Group