Richard A. Koffman, a partner at Cohen Milstein, co-chair of the firm’s Pro Bono Committee, and former co-chair of the Antitrust practice, litigates antitrust cases on behalf of the victims of corporations engaged in price-fixing, wage-suppression conspiracies, market monopolization, and other unlawful conduct.
Richard has had the honor of serving as court-appointed Lead or Co-Lead Counsel in many landmark antitrust class actions, including the Urethanes Antitrust Litigation, which resulted in the second-largest price-fixing verdict in U.S. history and the largest jury verdict of 2013.
A former Senior Trial Attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust and Civil Rights Divisions, Richard views his role in litigating antitrust lawsuits as an extension of the public interest work he pursued at the DOJ in promoting competition and fighting discrimination.
In law school, Richard was senior editor of the Yale Law Journal.
- American Bar Association
- Committee To Save the Antitrust Laws (COSAL)
- Co-chair, Cohen Milstein Pro Bono Committee
- AsylumWorks, Volunteer Board Member
- Welcome Corps Private Refugee Sponsor Group
- Senior Trial Attorney, Housing & Civil Enforcement Section, Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 2001-2003
- Senior Trial Attorney, Computers & Finance Section (now Networks & Technology), Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 1999-2001
- Associate, Bernabei & Katz, 1998-1999
- Associate, Fine, Kaplan, & Black, 1992-1998
- District of Columbia
- Yale Law School, J.D., Senior Editor, Yale Law Journal, 1990
- Wesleyan University, B.A., Honors, Phi Beta Kappa, 1986
- Law Clerk, the Hon. James B. McMillan, United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, 1990-1991
- Law Clerk, the Hon. Anthony J. Scirica, United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 1991-1992
Current Cases
UFC MMA Fighters Antitrust Litigation
Cung Le, et al v. Zuffa, LLC, d/b/a Ultimate Fighting Championship (D. Nev.): Cohen Milstein is co-lead counsel in this certified wage suppression class action, representing mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters who allege that UFC unlawfully monopolized the MMA market by, among other things, locking up fighters in exclusive contracts and acquiring MMA rivals. On February 6, 2025, the court granted final approval of a historic $375 million settlement against UFC - exclusively for the MMA fighters in the Le class action. The Johnson class action continues.
Yuen, et al. v. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.
Yuen, et al. v. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (N.D. Cal.): Cohen Milstein is Interim Co-Lead Class Counsel in this putative antitrust class action which alleges that IDEXX engaged in an anticompetitive scheme, causing pet owners to pay artificially inflated prices for inhouse point-of-care (“POC”) analyzers, consumables, and single-use rapid test kits used by veterinarians to diagnose and treat family pets.
Brown v. JBS USA Food Company, et al.
Brown v. JBS USA Food Company, et al. (D. Col.): Cohen Milstein serves as Interim Co-Lead Counsel in this wage suppression antitrust class action against eleven of country’s largest beef and pork producers and several of their subsidiaries, including JBS USA Food, Tyson Foods, Cargill, Hormel Foods, American Foods, Perdue Farms, Smithfield Foods, and National Beef Packing. On March 8, 2024, Plaintiffs filed motions for preliminary approval of a total $127.2 million in settlements against Tyson Foods and JBS USA Food. Pending final approval, settlements thus far total $200 million.
Stock Loan Antitrust Litigation
Iowa Public Employees Retirement System, et al. v. Bank of America Corp., et al. (S.D.N.Y.): Cohen Milstein is co-counsel in this groundbreaking putative class action, in which investors accuse Wall Street banks of engaging in a group boycott and conspiring to thwart the modernization of and preserve their dominance over the $1.7 trillion stock loan market. On September 4, 2024, the court granted final approval of a historic $580 million cash settlement and significant injunctive relief against defendants Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, UBS, JP Morgan, Credit Suisse, and EquiLend. Litigation against Bank of America continues.
In re Payment Card Interchange Fee and Merchant Discount Antitrust Litigation
In re Payment Card Interchange Fee and Merchant Discount Antitrust Litigation (E.D.N.Y.): Cohen Milstein represents gasoline retailers in numerous states in an antitrust class against Visa, Inc. and MasterCard, Inc. for orchestrating an anticompetitive scheme artificially inflating the “interchange fees” charged to process credit card transactions on their networks.
Past Cases
Treasuries Antitrust Litigation
In re: Treasuries Securities Antitrust Litigation (S.D.N.Y.): Cohen Milstein was Co-Lead Counsel in this ground-breaking antitrust and Commodity Exchange Act class action alleging many of the nation’s biggest banks manipulated the $13 trillion market for U.S. Treasuries and related instruments. Cohen Milstein and co-counsel developed the case independently, without the assistance or benefit of any preceding government investigation or enforcement action.
In re Urethane Antitrust Litigation
In re Urethane Antitrust Litigation (D. Kan.): Cohen Milstein served as Co-Lead Counsel on behalf of a class of direct purchasers of urethane chemicals who were overcharged as a result of a nationwide price-fixing conspiracy. Cohen Milstein and their co-counsel prevailed at trial and obtained a judgment of $1.06 billion against Dow Chemical in 2013. Dow ultimately settled for $835 million while the case was on appeal before the Supreme Court, bringing the total recovery, including prior settlements with other defendants, to $974 million – nearly 250% of the damages found by the jury. The Honorable John W. Lungstrum, who presided over the trial, remarked: “In almost 25 years of service on the bench, this Court has not experienced a more remarkable result.”
Plasma-Derivative Protein Therapies Antitrust Litigation
In re Plasma-Derivative Protein Therapies Antitrust Litigation (N.D. Ill.): Cohen Milstein served as Co-Lead Counsel for plaintiffs alleging that the two largest manufacturers of IVIG and Albumin – life-saving therapies derived from blood plasma – conspired to reduce the supply and increase the prices of these therapies, resulting in settlements totaling $128 million for hospitals and other direct purchasers.
In re Dental Supplies Antitrust Litigation
In re Dental Supplies Antitrust Litigation (E.D.N.Y.): Cohen Milstein served as Co-Lead Counsel for a class of dental practices and dental laboratories. Plaintiffs alleged that Henry Schein, Inc., Patterson Companies, Inc., and Benco Dental Supply Company – the three largest dental supply and dental equipment distributors in the United States – fixed price margins on dental equipment, jointly pressured manufacturers to squeeze out competitors, and agreed not to “poach” each other’s employees, in violation of antitrust law. On June 24, 2019, the court granted final approval to an $80 million settlement. In approving the settlement, the court noted, "This is a substantial recovery that has the deterrent effect that class actions are supposed to have."
Carlin et al. v. DairyAmerica Inc. et al.
Carlin et al. v. DairyAmerica Inc. et al. (E.D. Cal.): Cohen Milstein represented tens of thousands of dairy farmers who alleged that cooperative DairyAmerica Inc. and affiliate California Dairies conspired to boost profits by artificially depressing the price of milk products paid to farmers. On May 9, 2019, the Court granted final approval to a $40 million settlement - a remarkable recovery. It is 80% of the $50 million in damages estimated by the USDA Inspector General and approximately 50% of the total damages calculated by plaintiffs’ experts.
- Global Competition Review, Who’s Who Legal: Competition USA Thought Leaders (2022-2024)
- Global Competition Review, Who’s Who Legal: Competition USA (2019-2024)
- Global Competition Review, Competition Leading Lawyers (2016-2018)
- Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyers (2019-2024)
- Legal 500 Hall of Fame (2017-2024)
- Legal 500 Leading Lawyer for Antitrust Class Actions (2011-2019)
- Super Lawyers (2020)
- Law360 Competition MVP (2016)
- U.S. Department of Justice Special Achievement Award (2001)
February 7, 2025
UFC Fighters Get Final Approval For $375M Settlement
A Nevada federal judge granted final approval to a $375 million settlement in a more than a decade-long class action lawsuit in which fighters accused UFC of suppressing their wages.
In the News | Law360
October 23, 2024
US Judge Approves UFC Fighters’ $375 Million Wage Settlement
A federal judge in Las Vegas has preliminarily approved a class action settlement requiring Ultimate Fighting Championship to pay $375 million to fighters who said they were underpaid for their bouts for years. Lawyers for the mixed martial arts fighters called the decision by U.S. District Judge Richard Boulware II a “monumental achievement that will […]
In the News | Reuters
October 22, 2024
UFC Fighters Win Initial OK On $375M Wage Suppression Deal
A Nevada federal judge on Tuesday gave his blessing to a $375 million settlement resolving a group of former UFC fighters’ claims that the organization for years underpaid match participants, the fighters’ counsel confirmed. During a hearing in his Las Vegas courtroom, U.S. District Judge Richard F. Boulware II granted preliminary approval to the proposed […]
In the News | Law360
October 23, 2024
Court Approves Landmark $375M Settlement with Ultimate Fighting Championship
A Nevada federal court granted preliminary approval of a landmark $375 million settlement between a certified class of elite professional mixed martial art fighters and Zuffa, LLC dba Ultimate Fighting Championship.
In the News | Cohen Milstein
October 7, 2024
UFC Fighters Urge Judge to Greenlight $375M Settlement
A group of UFC fighters on Monday sought preliminary approval of a $375 million agreement that would net many fighters over $1 million each and settle their Nevada federal court dispute with UFC over what they say is a history of suppressed wages. The $375 million deal would resolve the case filed by fighter Cung […]
In the News | Law360
September 26, 2024
New UFC Settlement Separates Cases, Ups Payout to $375M
The UFC and its fighters have reached a revised settlement that upsizes the payout to $375 million, resolving a portion of their long dispute over wages and leaving claims from a similar class action unresolved, the organization said Thursday. UFC, a subsidiary of TKO Group Holdings Inc., said in a statement it was responding to […]
In the News | Law360
September 26, 2024
UFC Reaches $375M Settlement in Le v. Zuffa Antitrust Lawsuit
TKO Group, the UFC's parent company, reached an agreement with the plaintiffs of Le v. Zuffa that will pay $375 million in the class action lawsuit in which former fighters allege the MMA promotion violated antitrust laws.
In the News | ESPN
August 10, 2023
UFC Officially Involved in Class-Action Lawsuit, Over $1.6B in Damages Possible
The UFC is potentially being sued by over a thousand fighters. The ongoing UFC Antitrust lawsuit has been elevated to class-action, after a court ruling from Judge Boulware on August 9. The UFC Antitrust Lawsuit Explained Simply Back in December 2014, a group of MMA fighters — some still active — joined together to file […]
In the News | Sports Illustrated
February 14, 2024
Judge Rebukes UFC In Antitrust Class Certification Order, Leaves Openings For Appeal
After five-and-a-half long years, the judge overseeing the antitrust lawsuit against the UFC finally released his order granting class certification status to the plaintiff fighters seeking up to $1.6 billion in damages. Last Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Richard Boulware of Las Vegas, NV certified a “bout class” of over 1,200 fighters who fought for the […]
In the News | Forbes
August 9, 2023
Antitrust Suit Against UFC Officially Granted Class Certification
The plaintiffs seemingly earned a strategic victory in an antitrust lawsuit against the UFC in 2020. Nearly three years later, that win has been made official. Federal judge Richard F. Boulware granted the plaintiffs class certification on Wednesday, according to a document from the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada. The lawsuit against […]
In the News | ESPN
February 13, 2024
Energizer, Walmart Can’t Ditch Battery Pricing Collusion Suits
Energizer and Walmart cannot escape a trio of class actions accusing the battery manufacturer of giving the big box chain almost complete control over the retail price its batteries are sold for and forbidding other retailers from undercutting them. U.S. District Judge P. Casey Pitts on Friday spent 21 pages laying out exactly why he […]
In the News | Law360
January 19, 2024
UFC Loses Bid To End Wage Suppression Case Ahead Of Trial
A Nevada federal court denied a summary judgment motion from Ultimate Fighting Championship’s parent company Zuffa LLC. The order said the court already considered UFC's arguments, for both the summary judgment and exclusion bids, when it certified a class of fighters in the case on August 9, 2023. The case moves to trial by jury, scheduled for April 8, 2024.
In the News | Law360
August 9, 2023
UFC Fighters Get Class Cert In Wage Suppression Suit
A Nevada federal judge gave Ultimate Fighting Championship fighters a crucial, long-awaited win Wednesday with the certification of one of two proposed classes in an antitrust suit alleging the organization repressed wages by up to $1.6 billion through coercive, exclusive contracts and the purchase of rival promoters. U.S. District Judge Richard F. Boulware II certified […]
In the News | Law360
July 27, 2022
Pet Owners Say IDEXX Illegally Cornered Test Kit Market
Pet owners across the country hit IDEXX Laboratories with a proposed class action Monday in California federal court, accusing the animal health diagnostic services company of abusing its monopoly power and throttling the competition, which purportedly led to artificially inflated prices of test kits. In a lengthy, 92-page complaint alleging violations of antitrust and numerous state consumer protection laws, […]
In the News | Law360
July 1, 2022
Judge Says Stock Loan Antitrust Class Should Be Certified
A federal magistrate judge has called for the partial certification of a proposed class of investors who accused major banks including JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs of colluding to kill competition in the stock loan market, saying that the class meets all the necessary requirements, but the class period should not be expanded. U.S. Magistrate Judge […]
In the News | Law360
July 1, 2022
Stock-Loan Case Against Goldman, Other Banks Takes Step Toward Class Certification
Pension funds allege “group boycott” of startup platforms in stock loan market Manhattan federal judge in 2018 declined to dismiss case Credit Suisse in February first to settle, for $81 million A Manhattan federal judge on Thursday recommended the certification of a class of investors who have alleged Goldman Sachs Group Inc, JPMorgan Chase & […]
In the News | Reuters
February 11, 2022
Credit Suisse to Pay $81M to Exit Stock Loan Antitrust Suit
Credit Suisse has agreed to pay investors $81 million to be the first bank to exit a putative New York federal court class action accusing banks of colluding to kill competition in the stock loan market, the investors said in a bid for preliminary approval of the so-called icebreaker deal Friday. As a part of […]
In the News | Law360
January 5, 2022
Neither Business, Nor Labor Offers Justices United Fronts in Vaccine Fight
The employer vaccinate-or-test rule has been particularly contentious, even amongst business and labor groups. As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments over the Biden administration’s vaccine mandates, there is not just a familiar division between business and workers in the amici briefs, but division within their own ranks as well, over the legal […]
In the News | The National Law Journal
August 5, 2021
Investors Say They Have ‘Smoking Gun’ In Auction-Fixing Suit
Investors suing a group of Wall Street banks including Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse for allegedly conspiring to manipulate the $14 trillion market for securities issued by the U.S. Treasury Department are fighting to keep their case alive after their initial complaint was dismissed in March. On Wednesday, investors filed their omnibus opposition brief contesting the various dismissal briefs […]
In the News | Law360
June 24, 2021
Fighters File Class Action Antitrust Lawsuit Against the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Endeavor Group Holdings, Inc.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (Philadelphia, PA – June 24, 2021) – Kajan Johnson and C.B. Dollaway, two long-time veterans of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (“UFC”), filed a proposed class action antitrust lawsuit against Zuffa, LLC (d/b/a Ultimate Fighting Championship and UFC) and its parent company Endeavor Group Holdings, Inc. The lawsuit is similar to the class […]
Press Releases
June 24, 2021
UFC Faces Antitrust Suit by Fighters Over ‘Iron-Fisted Control’
COURT: D. Nev. TRACK DOCKET: No. 21-cv-1189 JUDGE: Andrew P. Gordon Two mixed martial arts fighters hit Ultimate Fighting Championship with federal antitrust claims in Las Vegas over its alleged scheme to cement its “iron-fisted control” over the sport—and drive down athlete pay—by acquiring rival promoters and locking top talent into long-term exclusive contracts. The […]
In the News | Bloomberg Law
June 22, 2021
How a $1.6 Billion Lawsuit May Change the UFC Forever
Ultimate Fighting Championship has long dominated the world of mixed martial arts. But UFC’s effort to swallow up competitors has triggered a class action by fighters who claim it’s abusing its power. Now a key court victory threatens the organization’s very business model. Bloomberg’s Josh Eidelson investigates. The antitrust class action discussed in this Bloomberg […]
In the News | Bloomberg
April 13, 2021
Fighters in Antitrust Suit Against the Ultimate Fighting Championship (“UFC”) Announce Launch of UFCclassaction.com
Le et al. v. Zuffa, LLC, d/b/a/ Ultimate Fighting Championship and UFC Case No. 2:15-cv-01045 RFB-BNW (D. Nev.) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (Philadelphia, PA – April 13, 2021) – The representatives for a proposed class of professional mixed martial arts fighters in an antitrust lawsuit against the Ultimate Fighting Championship (“UFC”) today announced the launch of […]
Press Releases
September 27, 2018
Goldman, JPMorgan, Four Others Must Face Stock Lending Antitrust Case
A U.S. judge on Thursday ordered Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N), JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) and four other large banks to face an antitrust lawsuit by investors who said they conspired to stifle competition in the nearly $2 trillion stock lending market. U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla in Manhattan rejected the banks’ arguments […]
In the News | Reuters
August 17, 2017
Pension Funds Sue 6 Investment Banks Over Securities Lending Market Collusion
Three public pension funds claim in a federal class-action lawsuit filed Thursday that six major investment banks colluded to overcharge investors and maintain control of the $1.72 trillion stock loan market, according to a court document. The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in New York by the $28.5 billion Iowa Public Employees’ Retirement […]
In the News | Pensions & Investments
August 17, 2017
Top Wall Street Banks Accused of Conspiracy to Control Stock Lending Market Via Threatening Tactics and Boycotts
Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, UBS, Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America Face Antitrust Allegations NEW YORK—Several of the world’s largest investment banks have colluded, in violation of federal antitrust laws, to create and maintain exclusive control of the more than $1 trillion stock loan market, reaping massive profits at the expense of investors, […]
In the News
February 26, 2016
Dow Will Pay $835 Million in Polyurethane Price Fixing Case
Dow Chemical agreed to pay $835 million to settle a decade-long lawsuit on price fixing, saying it had less chance of winning its petition at the Supreme Court after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia. The chemicals company was found liable by a federal jury in Kansas in February 2013 in the class-action lawsuit, which […]
In the News | Reuters
June 27, 2013
Big Suits: In Re Urethane Antitrust Litigation
On May 15 a federal district court judge trebled a $400 million verdict in a class action in which customers had alleged that The Dow Chemical Company fixed prices for the chemical urethane. The $1.2 billion award, by U.S. District Judge John Lungstrum in Kansas City, Kansas, was by far the largest this year as […]
In the News | The American Lawyer
June 3, 2011
Huntsman To Pay $33M To Exit Urethane Antitrust MDL
Huntsman International LLC has agreed to pay $33 million to settle claims from direct purchasers in multidistrict urethane antitrust litigation, while bankrupt Lyondell Chemical Co. likewise reached a deal to exit the long-running case in Kansas, the plaintiffs said Thursday. Seegott Holdings Inc., Quabaug Corp. and Industrial Polymers Inc. — the representatives for the direct […]
In the News | Law360