Quinn Emanuel among law firms picked to lead pesticide antitrust litigation

June 5 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge has appointed a group of four plaintiffs' firms to lead multidistrict litigation in North Carolina accusing the world's largest seed and pesticide manufacturers of participating in a conspiracy with distributors to squelch competition.

In his order on Sunday, Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas Schroeder in Winston-Salem named Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll, Korein Tillery, Lowey Dannenberg and Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan to lead farmers' claims against defendants including pesticide manufacturers Syngenta Corp and Corteva Inc (CTVA.N).

The judge's order resolved six competing motions from firms seeking interim leadership over multidistrict litigation involving 29 lawsuits and 52 plaintiffs.

Firms in major U.S. class actions often vie for such roles, which gives them a chance to steer cases and potentially argue for attorneys' fees at the end of litigation.

The private lawsuits, filed after the Federal Trade Commission in September brought its own case, seek unspecified damages for farmers' costs.

Representatives from Swiss-based Syngenta and Indianapolis-based Corteva and their lawyers did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment. Syngenta is represented by Davis Polk & Wardwell, and Corteva by Cravath, Swaine & Moore.

The defendants have denied liability in the litigation, which focuses on insecticides and related products used on corn, soybeans, potatoes and other crops.

Lowey and Korein Tillery said in a court filing that they filed the first class complaint in North Carolina federal court in October 2022, and Schroeder credited the firms for conducting "significant activity in the case in its nascent stages."

Los Angeles-based Quinn Emanuel with more than 1,000 attorneys bills itself as the largest U.S. firm focused on business litigation. The firm represents plaintiffs and defendants.

The judge said the appointed group reported that a majority of plaintiffs had expressed support for their co-leadership.

The judge cautioned the appointed attorneys to "work in a manner that does not inflate the cost of litigation" and said that "any inability to efficiently handle the representation of the entire class may invite the court's consideration of a reassessment of the counsel appointment."

Other firms that sought court-appointed leadership included DiCello Levitt; Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer; Seeger Weiss; and Burns Charest.

The case is In re: Crop Protection Products Loyalty Program Antitrust Litigation, U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, No. 1:23-md-03062-TDS-JEP.

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