Will More Legal Settlements Be Blamed on or Attributed to Supreme Court Justice Scalia’s Death?

The death of a Supreme Court Justice causes problems on all sorts of levels. It has been known since the news broke that Justice Scalia’s death would create a political fight. It was also known that it could be a serious change for how corporate cases are treated in the review process at the U.S. Supreme Court. Well, according to Dow Chemical Co. (NYSE: DOW). it seems that Justice Scalia’s death is a serious issue.

It is impossible to know the real reason for a settlement in a legal battle. It could be one of several of dozens of potential reasons. That being said, Dow’s news of a legal settlement included the Supreme Court Justice’s death.

Dow announced on Friday that it has entered into a settlement agreement to resolve the “In re Urethanes Class Action litigation.” Dow has agreed to pay the plaintiff class a sum of $835 million, but the settlement agreement is conditioned on “the United States Supreme Court agreeing to hold Dow’s Petition for a Writ of Certiorari in abeyance and the subsequent approval of the class settlement by the United States District Court of Kansas.”

Dow said that the settlement will resolve the $1.06 billion judgment against Dow entered in 2013. Dow has a Petition for a Writ of Certiorari pending before the U.S. Supreme Court seeking to set aside the $1.06 billion judgment.

Dow’s Petition currently is being held by the Supreme Court pending a decision in Tyson Foods, a case with a common class action issue. Dow continues to believe strongly in its legal position as expressed in its petition.
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What is interesting here is how Dow described this settlement. The company’s statement said:

Growing political uncertainties due to recent events within the Supreme Court and increased likelihood for unfavorable outcomes for business involved in class action suits have changed Dow’s risk assessment of the situation. Dow believes this settlement is the right decision for the company and our shareholders.

While Dow is settling this case, it continues to strongly believe that it was not part of any conspiracy and the judgment was fundamentally flawed as a matter of class action law. Further, the judgment covered alleged legacy activity between 2000 and 2003. Dow cooperated with an extensive investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice, which closed its investigation in 2007 without taking any or proposing any action against Dow. Dow’s position at the U.S. Supreme Court is that the judgment violates class action law in multiple ways, notably with respect to the Supreme Court’s Walmart decision of 2011 and the Comcast decision of 2013, both authored by Justice Scalia.

Dow Chemical shares were last seen up 1.8% at $48.97 on Friday. Its consensus analyst price target is $53.89 and its 52-week range is $35.11 to $57.10.