Cadbury Antitrust Case Can Go Stale for $1.3 Mil.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (CN) - Cadbury, the London-based confectionary giant, will pay $1.3 million to settle charges of its involvement in an alleged chocolate price-fixing conspiracy, a federal judge ruled.

Cadbury PLC, Cadbury Holdings and Cadbury Adams Canada will be dismissed from the case, under the terms of the settlement, which U.S. District Judge Christopher Conner granted final approval after a hearing Monday.

The settlement agreement, posted online by the class-action administrator handling the case, also requires Cadbury, a Kraft subsidiary, to help the plaintiffs in their case against non-settling defendants Hershey, Nestle and Mars.

In late 2002, the world's largest chocolatiers allegedly conspired to enact "a series of parallel price increases" that would inflate the price of chocolate candy sold in the United States.

Attorneys for the class plan to funnel the entire settlement back into the remaining claims, according to the claims administrator, Heffler, Radetich and Saitta.

"If the settlement fund is utilized for that purpose, there will not be any payments to members of the settlement class from the settlement fund," according to the administrator.

Class counsel did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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