Claims Now Open in $83.5 Million Settlement with JBS in Cattle Antitrust Case

On February 20, 2025, the Cattle Plaintiffs in the In re: Cattle and Beef Antitrust Litigation against JBS, Tyson, Cargill and National Beef received preliminary approval of an $83.5 million settlement with JBS. The class action lawsuit, filed in 2019 by National Farmers Union (NFU), R-CALF USA and four individual ranchers, alleges anticompetitive conduct in the cattle market. Eligible parties may now submit claims under the terms of the JBS settlement. 

The court’s action establishes certain deadlines for persons who may be eligible to share in the JBS settlement. The settlement classes covered by the proposed settlement include, subject to certain exclusions and conditions, all persons or entities: a) within the U.S. that directly sold fed cattle for slaughter to Tyson, JBS, Cargill and/or National Beef from June 1, 2015, to February 29, 2020, other than pursuant to a cost-plus agreement and/or a profit sharing agreement; b) who held a long position in live cattle futures traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) prior to June 1, 2015, and subsequently liquidated the long position through an offsetting market transaction at any point prior to November 1, 2016. The deadline to submit claims is September 15, 2025.