U.S. Appeals Court Rules Against Stora Enso

NEW YORK—A federal appeals court here ruled that Stora Enso North America must face a civil antitrust suit brought by its customers, Bloomberg reported. The ruling reverses a trial judge's dismissal of the case.

According to the U.S. Court of Appeals, a jury could potentially find that the firm, now owned by NewPage Corp., conspired to fix prices. The decision regarding Stora Enso's former Helsinki-based parent company, Stora Enso Oyj, which was thrown out by the lower court for a lack of evidence, was affirmed by the appeals court.

The case, brought by paper buyers, alleged that executives at Stora Enso's then-U.S. unit engaged in secret meetings with UPM-Kymmene Oyj—another Finnish paper manufacturer—and conspired to fix publication paper prices during 2002 and 2003, according to the decision. Plaintiff damages were estimated to be upwards of $102.5 million.

In 2007, a jury in the criminal case acquitted Stora Enso North America of U.S. antitrust law violations.