D.C. Appeals Court Reinstates Antitrust Suit Against Visa, MasterCard

The District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday reinstated an antitrust class action lawsuit against Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. that was brought by the National ATM Council (NAC). The NAC filed the lawsuit in 2011, alleging the two companies had imposed unlawful and restrictive rules that kept Automated Teller Machine operators from offering lower prices for ATM transactions that weren't affiliated with Visa or MasterCard, according to a news release. The rules led to price fixing that raised the price consumers pay to use ATMs. The D.C. appellate court was reversing a district court decision from 2013 to dismiss the suit. The lawsuit seeks damages against Visa and MasterCard for violating antitrust laws and asks that the court urge the companies to discontinue their restrictive rules on how operators charge ATM fees.