Callahan & Blaine

The Los Angeles District Attorney’s office has settled the case of two SCUBA diving business owners that ganged up on a competitor. Two Avalon SCUBA outfits attempted to drive competitor Ron Moore of Dive Catalina out of business by fixing prices for diving tours. According to the D.A.’s office the textbook collusion resulted in unfair competition against Dive Catalina and Ron Moore.

As part of the settlement, Robert S. Kennedy, owner of Scuba Luv on Catalina Island, agreed to pay penalties and legal and investigative costs, but admits no liability. The agreement also bars Kennedy from engaging in any future unlawful competition or restraint of trade in the SCUBA diving business in violation of California’s Unfair Competition Law.

The co-defendant, John W. Mello, former owner of Catalina Divers Supply, reached a similar settlement with the Los Angeles D.A.’s Office last February.

“Cases like this serve as a reminder to businesses in general that laws against restraint of trade must be taken seriously and will be vigorously enforced,” Deputy District Attorney Kathleen Tuttle said. Unfair competition drives up prices and harms consumers and honest business owners.

If you or a loved one is involved in an accident that causes death or serious injury, call Callahan & Blaine, California’s Premier Litigation Firm. We are one of the leading catastrophic injury firms in the state of California. In fact, in the last five years alone our lawyers have obtained over $1.2 billion in verdicts and settlements, including a record breaking $50 Million settlement against the City of Dana Point, which has been certified as the largest personal injury settlement in the history of the United States.  Callahan & Blaine has also recently obtained a $28 Million settlement for a driver who was hit by a runaway truck wheel on the freeway, a $7 million settlement for a bicyclist who was struck by a newspaper delivery truck, and a $7.25 million settlement for a man who was run over trying to board a city bus.

Our success in litigating and negotiating personal injury cases comes from our uncommon approach; we handle each personal injury case as though it were a complex business litigation case, attacking it from every angle possible. While our firm is located in Orange County, California, we handle serious personal injury, wrongful death and product liability cases nationwide.

If you or someone you know has suffered a catastrophic injury or died as the result of a fall, please contact our California law firm for expert legal counsel.