Hanna Holdings Inc., one of the largest real estate brokerages in the US, failed to skirt an antitrust suit when a federal judge issued a mixed opinion on its motion to dismiss, following a similar ruling in March.
Judge Wendy Beetlestone of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania said in a Monday opinion that the home buyer plaintiffs plausibly alleged a vertical agreement between Hanna and the National Association of Realtors to enforce anticompetitive rules, but failed to adequately plead a horizontal conspiracy between Hanna and other brokerages.
The lawsuit claims Hanna participated in a scheme to inflate buyer-agent commissions and stifle competition in real estate markets across the country.
Beetlestone in March granted part of Hanna’s motion to dismiss, saying the plaintiffs only had standing to pursue claims under state law but not under the federal Sherman Act. She allowed the plaintiffs to amend their claim and refile.
In Monday’s opinion, the judge permitted federal and state antitrust claims to proceed but dismissed several state consumer protection and unjust enrichment claims without prejudice, also giving plaintiffs an opportunity to refile those claims.
Hanna is among a slew of real estate brokerages that faced antitrust suits after a Missouri jury awarded nearly $1.8 billion in damages in a 2023 case against the National Association of Realtors, finding that the NAR colluded to inflate brokerage commissions.
The verdict prompted a string of follow-on suits against real estate brokerages, among them a proposed national class action against Hanna, considered the largest privately-held real estate brokerage company in the US.
NAR subsequently negotiated the settlement and received final approval for a settlement of $418 million in November 2024.
WilmerHale represents Hanna Holdings Inc. The plaintiffs are represented by Lowey Dannenberg PC and Korein Tillery LLC.
The case is Davis v. Hanna Holdings, Inc., E.D. Pa., 24-2374, 6/23/25.
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