A proposed class action lawsuit against the International Yacht Brokers Association (IYBA) has been dismissed by a federal judge.
The world’s largest yacht brokers’ association and others had been accused by Ya Mon Expeditions of a conspiracy of inflating sales commissions.
However Miami-based U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore ruled that the plaintiffs failed to show a group of boating brokerages, yacht broker associations and a yacht listing service conspired to fix broker commissions.
And he also stated that it is not unreasonable for yacht brokerages to want to do business only with sellers who have an agent representing them.
Commission
The case, filed by a group of yacht sellers, alleged that IYBA, California Yacht Brokers Association and Yacht Brokers Association of America and others, including Boat Trader, Yacht World and Boats.com operator Boats Group LLC, violated antitrust law by coercing sellers to pay a commission of 10% of a vessel’s sale price which is split between the agents for both sides in a sale.
The brokers’ collective commissions are paid by the seller.
Ya Mon Expeditions alleged that only boat brokers can list boats and yachts with IYBA.
Listings from private boat owners are not accepted.
As a result, stated Ya Mon Expeditions in their complaint, “The defendants and their co-conspirators together control the market for the purchase and sale of pre-owned boats and yachts because it is virtually impossible to sell a pre-owned boat or yacht without using the services of defendants and their co-conspirators.”
Unilateral and reasonable decision to conduct business with licensed professionals.
District Judge K. Michael Moore
Three lawsuits, first filed in February 2024, drew parallels to the listing services through which most homes are sold in the US.
In this system, home sellers typically pay a commission that covers the services of their agent and a broker for the buyer.
The yacht industry defendants said the plaintiffs were seeking to ‘piggyback’ off lawsuits against home brokers and the trade group National Association of Realtors.
The yacht defendants told the court that unlike the real estate litigation, “no dominant yacht-broker trade association can set rules for all yacht brokers, and no single platform is essential to competition.”
In dismissing the cases, the judge stated: “The court cannot conclude that defendants’ actions amounted to anything more than their unilateral and reasonable decision to conduct business with licensed professionals, rather than individuals who may be unexperienced or unfamiliar with the process of selling a used yacht.”
