Eaton to defend against class action suit

NEW YORK — The legal tug of war in the truck transmission sector marked a new chapter as a class action lawsuit was filed against Eaton Corp. for supposedly monopolizing the market.

The suit, filed by New York firm Murray, Frank & Sailer LLP on behalf of truck buyers, alleges that Eaton negotiated with truck OEMs to cut ZF Meritor and other transmission suppliers out of the market, forcing up the price of trucks with Eaton transmissions.

Eaton issued a statement saying that the claims in this suit are "meritless."

"We will vigorously defend the company against these claims."

Truck buyers claim in the suit that they paid more for new equipment than they should have.

ArvinMeritor said it was forced to stop selling ZF transmissions because of Eaton’s actions.

Four years ago, ZF Meritor filed an antitrust lawsuit against Eaton, accusing the company of engaging in similar anticompetitive conduct. ZF said said Eaton offered truck OEMs "lucrative rebates and share penetration incentives" and threatened "retaliation" if they purchased ZF transmissions.

A jury determined that Eaton’s exclusivity agreements with the OEMs "constituted a contract, combination, or conspiracy that unreasonably restrained trade."

— with files from Truckinginfo.com