[ad_1]
Nov 8 (Reuters) – Veteran appellate lawyer Paul Clement will lead the U.S. court team for home broker Keller Williams as it and other companies prepare to fight their $1.8 billion loss at trial in an antitrust case accusing them of conspiring to inflate real estate commissions.
Austin-Texas based Keller Williams, which markets itself as the largest real estate franchise by number of agents, in a statement on Wednesday said Clement was “well-matched for this high-stakes appeals process.”
Clement, a former George W. Bush-era U.S. solicitor general, has argued more than 100 cases at the U.S. Supreme Court. He will join other veteran appellate lawyers who are jumping into the blockbuster case after home sellers prevailed at trial last month in Kansas City, Missouri, federal court.
The National Association of Realtors, a defendant in the case and whose commission rules were at issue, said it had brought on Gregory Garre of Latham & Watkins for its post-trial legal team. Garre also is a former U.S. solicitor.
Real estate brokerage HomeServices of America, owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N), has hired Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher’s Theodore Boutrous.
In the underlying case, a jury on Oct. 31 said home sellers had paid inflated commissions to real estate brokers representing home buyers. The verdict will be automatically tripled to more than $5 billion under U.S. antitrust law.
Keller Williams, HomeServices and the realtors’ association have said they will appeal to the St. Louis-based 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
In a statement, Clement said on Wednesday that “the verdict here raises serious legal issues.”
Clement, previously at law firm Kirkland & Ellis, opened a small, appellate-focused law office last year.
He said he left Kirkland over its stance that it would not represent clients any further on 2nd Amendment firearms matters. Clement has long advocated in court for gun rights and other conservative social causes.
Read more:
Appellate veterans to defend broker fees after sellers win $1.8 bln verdict
US home brokers face new lawsuits after $1.8 billion verdict
US jury finds realtors liable for inflating commissions, awards $1.78 bln damages
Reporting by Mike Scarcella
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
[ad_2]
This article was originally published by a www.reuters.com . Read the Original article here. .