The dispute began in 2005, when credit card companies were still owned by banks. Merchants had accused them of violating antitrust laws by illegally inflating swipe fees, or interchange, that merchants pay on every purchase transaction and which banks use to fund consumers’ credit-card rewards.
In 2013, the parties struck a then-record $5.7 billion deal that was approved by U.S. District Judge John Gleeson, only to have a federal appeals court reject it three years later, ruling that a provision that barred merchants from suing over fees was unfair. Gleeson stepped down from the bench in 2016 and the case is now assigned to Judge Margo K. Brodie.
After tossing out the earlier settlement, the court divided the merchants’ claims into two separate classes, one that focused on monetary damages and the other on making changes to their business practices. The proposed settlement is for the class focused on monetary damages