Walmart Being Sued for Bribing Mexican Government Fortune
go to original September 22, 2016

Protesters demonstrate in front of Walmart's Mexico City, Mexico headquarters, accusing the company of bribing the Mexican government to get the land of Martin Carrera neighborhood in Mexico City. (Alfredo Estrella/Getty Images)

Walmart must face a class-action lawsuit accusing the world’s largest retailer of defrauding shareholders by concealing suspected bribery to help it expand faster in Mexico, a U.S. judge said.

In a decision on Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Susan Hickey in Fayetteville, Arkansas rejected Walmart’s contention that a Michigan pension fund had no standing to lead the case because it had not suffered losses on the retailer’s stock.

The decision means shareholders can sue Walmart and former chief executive Mike Duke as a group over the alleged cover-up of bribery at Walmart de Mexico. This could lead to a larger payout at lower cost than if individual lawsuits were required.

Class certification “would enhance judicial economy and efficiency,” given that many shareholders had small claims, and “concentrating the claims in defendants’ home forum with uniform decisions is desirable,” Hickey wrote.

Walmart spokesman Randy Hargrove said the Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer believes a class action is “not appropriate,” and may appeal the certification decision.

The market value of Walmart fell by roughly $17 billion over three days in April 2012, after the New York Times published a Pulitzer Prize-winning report saying the retailer paid bribes to Mexican officials for years to speed up store openings.

Read the rest at Fortune

Related: Walmart de Mexico Growing Despite Bribery Charges (GuruFocus)

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