The Shreveport City Council has passed a resolution to explore potential litigation regarding inflated fire apparatus costs. The city has spent more than $10 million on fire apparatus, including ladder trucks and fire engines, during the period covered by the investigation.
Investigation and Potential Litigation
The city has authorized its city attorney to contract with two Louisiana-based commercial legal firms, Pettiette, Armand, Dunkelman, Woodley & Cromwell, LLP and Fishman Haygood, LLP, to investigate the matter. The firms will assume the cost of all initial studies and investigation to determine whether the city has a viable claim for damages.
The resolution notes that costs have grown at an alarming rate in the last 10 years, leading to suspicion, investigation, and now potential litigation. Several municipalities nationwide have filed antitrust litigation against fire truck manufacturers in federal court over alleged price-fixing.
Shreveport’s resolution names fire apparatus manufacturers, including Fire Apparatus Manufacturers Associations, OshKosh Corporation, REV Group, Inc., Rosenbauer America, LLC, and Ferrara Fire Apparatus, Inc. The city has not decided which court the case may be filed in, but a decision is expected within the next 30 days.
Original reporting: KTBS 3 (Shreveport) — read the source article.
