The Washington Post, April 5, 2024, Court Clears Path For Reopening Antitrust Probe Of Realtors Group
In a 21-page opinion, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit reversed a lower-court decision that the Justice Department was barred from reopening its investigation because of complications arising out of a 2020 settlement the government eventually withdrew from. The appeals court sent the matter back to the lower court, where Realtors could appeal to the full D.C. Circuit or attempt to find a new angle to challenge the investigation.
The decision represents the latest blow for the powerful real estate group, which agreed in March to pay $418 million to resolve several class-action lawsuits alleging it conspired to inflate commissions. The NAR, which denies any wrongdoing, also said it would revise a compensation structure that typically carves out 5 to 6 percent of a home’s sale price for agents.
