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Rather, he admitted that his allegation of "parallel consensual activities" is based solely on the fact that the defendants actually operate their businesses as they do. Accordingly, as in Shapiro, the doctrine of conscious parallelism, insofar as it constitutes circumstantial proof of conspiratorial actions, is of no aid to plaintiff. Other courts granted summary judgment in antitrust cases where the facts adduced through discovery and stipulation revealed the specious nature of the claims. 1206 (D.Md.1978), modified on other grounds, 602 F.2d 1173 (4th Cir. 1979), citing First National, supra; Shapiro v. General Motors Corp., supra. In this case, plaintiff's own testimony given at his deposition, the stipulations contained in the pretrial order, and plaintiff's contentions as enunciated both during his deposition and in the pretrial order, reveal that plaintiff's claims are insufficient as a matter of law.
Finally, the factual circumstances in Battle were quite different from those presented in this case. Liberty National Life Insurance Company and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Brown-Service Funeral Homes Company, Inc. (Brown-Service), had a contractual relationship by which Brown-Service agreed to furnish the commodities and services required by Liberty National's burial insurance policies. To perform its obligations under that contract, Brown-Service in turn contracted with many independent funeral homes. Upon signing a contract with Brown-Service, each funeral home became an "authorized" funeral home for servicing Liberty National's burial insurance policies.
Schoen's Funeral Home
Plaintiff's original complaint was a vague and conclusory document, and all defendants eventually filed motions to strike, motions for a more definite statement, or motions to dismiss various portions of the complaint. At a hearing held April 11, 1980, this court granted most of the motions and ordered plaintiff to file an amended complaint setting out specifically his contentions regarding defendants' alleged violations of the Sherman Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 1, et seq., and the Clayton Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 12, et seq. YP - The Real Yellow PagesSM - helps you find the right local businesses to meet your specific needs.
Even assuming for the sake of argument that plaintiff is correct, any anticompetitive effect upon plaintiff resulting from the alleged acquisitions in Logansport, Minden and Coushatta would certainly be de minimis. For these reasons, the court finds that plaintiff's claims under § 7 of the Clayton Act are meritless. The antitrust laws, and that the anticompetitive effect of those violations forced his own funeral home out of business. The funeral homes named as defendants are Rose-Neath Funeral Homes, Inc. (Rose-Neath) and Wellman Funeral Parlor, Inc. .
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As the pretrial order clearly discloses, there are many questions of fact which have not been resolved. However, none of those issues of fact are material to a resolution of the legal issues addressed in this Ruling. Accordingly, defendants' motion for summary judgment is GRANTED, and plaintiff's claims are DISMISSED. After an informal status conference, the court ordered plaintiff to submit a second amended complaint, in complete conformance with the court's April 11 ruling. Plaintiff filed this document on May 27, 1980, but it also did not comply with the court's ruling. In the interest of proceeding with this rapidly aging case, the defendants apparently avoided filing further objections to the second amended complaint, choosing instead to depose plaintiff to discover the nature of his allegations.
Other homes opened in Covington, (the Schoen & Molloy Funeral Home in 1915) and in Slidell . We follow up with families after services and provide continual grief support as part of our services. A You can have an agreement by actions as well as by written or verbal word. Of the "business of insurance" as that term is used in § 2 of the McCarran-Ferguson Act.
Jacob Schoen & Son Funeral Home
In this case, however, plaintiff has directed his claims at specific provisions contained in insurance policies. In addition, though the court is unsure of the exact meaning of plaintiff's contention as stated on page 25 of the pretrial order, the court finds that this claim, as stated, is barred by the McCarran-Ferguson Act. As mentioned above, plaintiff complains that a territorial allocation "occurs" because defendant insurance companies sell only in areas where authorized funeral directors are located. There can be no question that sales of insurance policies constitute the "business of insurance" within the contemplation of the McCarran-Ferguson Act. For these reasons, the court finds that plaintiff's contentions regarding an alleged territorial allocation are specious. During the deposition, plaintiff's allegations became more clear.
The overwhelming market power of Liberty National and Brown-Service is not alleged and does not exist. More importantly, Liberty National and its subsidiary allegedly operated as a contractually-tied juggernaut in crushing competition, while in this case plaintiff does not allege that the independent insurance companies have contracted or operate as one. We try to offer you a home—a comforting and inviting place to gather in remembrance and celebration of lives lived well. As a funeral home in New Orleans, our experienced staff is committed to this vision and passionate about making your time with us as memorable and uplifting as possible.
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Logansport, Minden and Coushatta constitute illegal acquisitions under § 7 of the Clayton Act. Experience the peace of mind that comes from knowing your loved ones will not be burdened during this difficult time. To leave a remembrance or condolence for a family, click on the name to open up the obituary and then choose Tribute Wall. Licensed staff members are available around the clock—24 hours a day, 7 days a week—to discuss your needs. Whether you are doing pre-planning or need to hold a service soon, we are ready to answer our phone and offer you warm, friendly, and empathetic service.
In the pretrial order, plaintiff added one further contention which was not clearly discernible from his deposition. Plaintiff argues that the fact that defendant insurance companies sell funeral service policies only in areas where authorized funeral directors are located constitutes a territorial allocation, in violation of § 1 of the Sherman Act. Jacob Schoen & Son Funeral Home is one of the experienced funeral homes and cremations providers in Louisiana. Jacob Schoen & Son Funeral Home is proud to offer funeral services, burial services, and cremation services. Since 1859, the Jacob Schoen & Son Funeral Home has cared for Central LA families with compassion and commitment to excellence. In addition to the services we offer, you will receive an online memorial that you can share with family and friends.
The Fifth Circuit characterized the scope of this appellate review as "narrow". Basically, the Fifth Circuit considered only the sufficiency of the allegations contained in plaintiffs' complaint. THE BATTLE CASEThroughout the course of this lawsuit, and particularly in his pretrial memorandum of law, plaintiff has relied heavily upon the Fifth Circuit's opinion in a similar antitrust case, Battle v. Liberty National Life Insurance Co., 493 F.2d 39 (5th Cir. 1974). In Battle, the Fifth Circuit reversed the ruling of a district court which had granted defendants' motion to dismiss under Fed.R.Civ.P. Despite the superficial similarities between Battle and this case, a cursory review of the Battle opinion reveals that it is totally distinguishable from this case. This site is provided as a service of SCI Shared Resources, LLC. The Dignity Memorial brand name is used to identify a network of licensed funeral, cremation and cemetery providers that include affiliates of Service Corporation International, 1929 Allen Parkway, Houston, Texas.
We are a funeral home and cremation service provider in New Orleans, LA, Metairie, LA, and Chalmette, LA. Don’t hesitate to call us so our dedicated funeral directors can assist you. 48, 53 (W.D.Pa.1971), modified on other grounds, 463 F.2d 470 (3d Cir. 1972), cert. Obviously, there is no horizontal price fixing present in this case, since there are no "arrangements" among competitors, inasmuch as the insurance companies and the funeral homes who are designated in the policies are not competitors.
In addition, plaintiff's contentions regarding tying agreements, couched as they are within the context of the issuance of funeral service policies, are clearly exempt from antitrust scrutiny under the McCarran-Ferguson Act. (Emphasis added.) This passage clearly reflects that the "parallel consensual activities" of which plaintiff complains are founded upon the insurance company defendants' use of the 75 per cent cash payment provisions in their funeral service insurance policies. As discussed above, these provisions are inherently a part of the "business of insurance", so that plaintiff's claim of a "tacit agreement" in restraint of trade is barred by the McCarran-Ferguson Act.
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