August 18, 2024 — CDK Global has agreed to pay $100 million to settle a class action lawsuit brought by 25 dealers seven years ago as part of a series of antitrust allegations.

The lawsuit alleges that the DMS vendor conspired with competitor Reynolds and Reynolds to eliminate competition in the Data Integration Services market, resulting in dealers and vendors paying more to access and integrate data.

Reynolds and Reynolds settled a similar lawsuit in 2018 for $29.5 million, which was placed in an interest-earning escrow account and will be part of the proposed CDK settlement.

The lawsuit is part of a series of suits filed by 25 dealers and seven vendors beginning in early 2017 that were later grouped into a multi-district litigation (MDL) in the Northern District Court in Illinois. (MDL No. 2817 Case No. 18-cv-00864).

An MDL classification is a unique civil procedure designed to streamline cases by consolidating pre-trial activity, such as the discovery process, depositions, and other court-related motions, in civil cases involving similar issues and parties into one court. Once the pre-trial activity is completed, cases return to their original courts.

Reynolds and Reynolds settled all of its lawsuits with the dealers and vendors. CDK has settled with all except for the one filed by AutoLoop in 2018 (pending CDK’s expected settlement with dealers).

In late July, Judge Pallmeyer ruled AutoLoop had met the standard to certify its lawsuit into a class action representing 244 other auto retail vendors who purchased data integration services from CDK, Reynolds and Reynolds (which is not a defendant) or one of their affiliate companies.

Cox Automotive and its subsidiaries and any vendor who first purchased integration services after June 5, 2018, are excluded.

The ruling sends the AutoLoop case back to Wisconsin where the suit was first filed. Plaintiffs are asking for $395 million.

Listed below are the various lawsuits that were filed and that have been settled:

Reynolds and Reynolds

• MVSC – Settled
• Authenticom – Settled
• Dealers – Settled
• Superior Integrated Systems (Darwin) – went to arbitration, settled
• i3 Brands – went to arbitration, settled

CDK Global

• MVSC – Settled
• Authenticom – Settled
• CRMSuite – Settled prior to MDL
• Cox Automotive – Settled
• AutoLoop – MDL, now can be certified into a class action
• i3 Brands – Settled
• Dealers – MDL, settlement has been proposed.

Combined, the lawsuits generated nearly 1.3 million documents as part of the discovery process and more than 100 depositions.

To read more about the MDL lawsuits, click HERE.