A federal judge in Kentucky has suggested mediation as a possibly avenue in lawsuits against Pilot Flying J in a rebate fraud case.
Federal Judge Amul Thapar may ask federal magistrate Gregory Wehrman to act as a mediator between the nation's largest truck stop chain, and the commercial clients that are suing it to recover money lost in the fraud scheme, the Knoxville News Sentinel reported Thursday.
Plaintiffs' attorneys Leonard Leicht and Stephen Tunstall expressed some skepticism toward the idea. Leicht said there isn't yet enough information for plaintiffs to enter mediation. Tunstall loss figures provided by Pilot are lower than ones he and his colleagues calculated.
Attorneys representing Pilot had a different take. Glenn Kurtz said the company has been upfront about the monetary losses, and that its calculations present an accurate depiction of losses to trucking companies. In a separate conversation, Aubrey Harwell seemed favorable to mediation.
Mediation carries benefits and risks for both sides at the table. Discussions can be kept private, among only Pilot, the plaintiffs and the mediator. A successful mediation would avoid a possibly lengthy trial. If the mediation fails, plaintiffs would still have the right to puruse their cases against Pilot.
The companies currently involved in the case opted out of an $85-million dollar settlement Pilot reached with many of its customers last November.