Former Bumble Bee Foods President and CEO Chris Lischewski formally appealed his conviction for leading a tuna price-fixing conspiracy in front of a three-judge panel on Wednesday, June 16.
Lischewski’s appeal is centered around an argument that District Court Judge Edward M. Chen, who oversaw the case, gave incorrect instructions to the jury. In Wednesday’s hearing, Lischewski’s lawyer, John D. Cline, called the jury instructions given by Chen erroneous and confusing, which could have made the difference in what he called a “very close case.”
“Against this backdrop, where so little stands between conviction and acquittal, it is extraordinarily important to instruct precisely and accurately on the agreement element, because that is all there is in this case,” Cline said. “It is particularly important in the context of this case, because this was a very close case, [but] you wouldn’t know it from the time the jury spent deliberating and I think that was due to the instructional error.”
Cline pointed to Chen’s instructions on the term “mutual understanding” and on the Per Se rule as being particularly damaging to Lischewski.
“One that troubles me the most is the mutual understanding instruction,” Cline said. “The only thing standing between Mr. Lischewski and prison was the agreement element, and yet when it came time to instruct on that element, the district judge … repeatedly instructed the jury that an agreement or mutual understanding would suffice. There’s a basic problem with that, which is this: Every agreement is a mutual understanding, but not every mutual understanding is an agreement, and in the context of this case, that difference is critical because there was, for example, evidence at trial that there was mutual understanding in the tuna industry that because fish costs were skyrocketing, prices had to go up. That is not the same as an agreement to fix prices.”
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
Featured News
CVS Health Explores Potential Breakup Amid Investor Pressure: Report
Oct 3, 2024 by
CPI
DirecTV Acquires Dish TV, Creating 20 Million-Subscriber Powerhouse
Oct 3, 2024 by
CPI
South Korea Fines Kakao Mobility $54.8 Million for Anti-Competitive Practices
Oct 3, 2024 by
CPI
Google Offers Settlement in India’s Antitrust Case Regarding Smart TVs
Oct 3, 2024 by
CPI
Attorney Challenges NCAA’s $2.78 Billion Settlement in Landmark Antitrust Cases
Oct 3, 2024 by
nhoch@pymnts.com
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Refusal to Deal
Sep 27, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust’s Refusal-to-Deal Doctrine: The Emperor Has No Clothes
Sep 27, 2024 by
Erik Hovenkamp
Why All Antitrust Claims are Refusal to Deal Claims and What that Means for Policy
Sep 27, 2024 by
Ramsi Woodcock
The Aspen Misadventure
Sep 27, 2024 by
Roger Blair & Holly P. Stidham
Refusal to Deal in Antitrust Law: Evolving Jurisprudence and Business Justifications in the Align Technology Case
Sep 27, 2024 by
Timothy Hsieh