Law firms jockey over stake in Disney consumer antitrust settlement

A proposed consumer antitrust settlement with The Walt Disney Co DIS has kicked off a turf battle among competing plaintiffs law firms, with one group calling the deal unfair and the other warning the spat could blow up the agreement.

Disney in June agreed to pay an undisclosed amount to settle a class action lawsuit by YouTube TV, DirecTV Stream and FuboTV subscribers represented by law firm Bathaee Dunne who claimed the company harmed competition for live-streamed paid television through agreements with providers.

Rival plaintiffs' lawyers at law firms DiCello Levitt and Lite DePalma Greenberg & Afanador, who represent Fubo consumers in a related lawsuit against Disney, complained in a Tuesday court filing that they were excluded from the negotiations.

The filing accused Bathaee Dunne, which sued first in 2022, of allowing Disney to engage in a “reverse auction” by agreeing to an inadequate settlement at the expense of other plaintiffs.

The Bathaee Dunne firm has denied allowing a lowball settlement and said in court filings that the deal is contingent on the firm being appointed as lead counsel for classes of YouTube TV, DirecTV Stream and Fubo subscribers.

Bathaee Dunne said the rival attorneys are “newly-arrived” and that their jockeying for a bigger seat at the table could derail the settlement.

Disney, which has denied any wrongdoing, and a lawyer for the company did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The lead plaintiffs’ attorneys in both cases also did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Disney controls live-stream provider Hulu and the sports network ESPN. Disney has required streaming providers such as YouTube TV to include ESPN as part of a base package. The consumer lawsuits contend Disney’s business agreements artificially increased consumer prices across the market for livestreamed television.

The proposed Disney settlement features a monetary component and other benefits, but the terms have not been publicly disclosed.

Disney in a recent filing said the proposed settlement is not open to renegotiation.

The cases are Biddle v. The Walt Disney Co and Unger v. The Walt Disney Co, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Nos. 5:22-cv-07317 and 5:25-cv-01163.

For Biddle: Yavar Bathaee and Brian Dunne of Bathaee Dunne

For Unger: Joseph DePalma and Steven Greenfogel of Lite DePalma Greenberg & Afanador; Greg Asciolla and Carrie Syme of DiCello Levitt

For Disney: Daniel Petrocelli of O’Melveny & Myers

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