New Petition Seeking Rehearing in DOJ Dispute
Update from Katie Johnson, NAR Chief Legal Officer and Chief Member Experience Officer
I am writing to share an important update regarding our ongoing dispute with the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Please note that the following update is unrelated to the private class action litigation in which NAR is a defendant and NAR's recent Settlement Agreement that, if approved, would resolve nationwide litigation over claims from home sellers related to broker commissions.
On May 20, 2024, NAR petitioned the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit for a rehearing, challenging its ruling that would allow DOJ to reopen a previously closed investigation into NAR's policies. You may recall we reached an agreement in 2020 to end an investigation into certain NAR policies-including the cooperative compensation rule and clear cooperation policy-provided that NAR modify four of its policies. NAR fully complied with that agreement.
Eight months later the DOJ resumed that same investigation, violating our agreement. We subsequently asked the DC District Court to prohibit the DOJ from pursuing its investigation. While the D.C. District Court ruled in our favor, DOJ appealed that decision, and it was subsequently reversed by the D.C. Circuit. This leads us to our challenge today.
It is important to underscore that this dispute focuses only on DOJ's ability to unilaterally withdraw from its settlement agreement with NAR, it does not address any of the Department's claims about NAR policies or antitrust topics. We believe this is a highly consequential government-contract-interpretation case and the impacts are far reaching. We are pursuing a rehearing as a step to continue to forcefully advocate for the interests of our members and underscore the flaws in the D.C. Circuit Court panel's split ruling.
REALTOR® Magazine has written up the petition where you can find additional information. I've also attached a copy of our petition to this post.
As always, if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out.
