Certification · Official / primary · Core: antitrust / funding
UK CAT certifies ACSO's opt-out collective claim against Amazon on conditions, with reasons to follow
On 13 October 2026 the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal ruled that ACSO can be authorised as class representative in its opt-out collective proceedings against Amazon group companies, subject to conditions; full reasons are to follow in a separate judgment.
- Jurisdiction
- United Kingdom (GB)
- Event date
- (decision date · day precision)
- Source published
- (publication date · day precision)
- Procedural posture
- Pending (last checked 14 October 2026)
- Source role
- Official / primary
- Amounts
- GBP 150 (other amount) — ACSO's fee per hour, subject to a daily cap of £750, as a condition of authorisation
- Case record
- UK CAT certifies ACSO's opt-out collective claim against Amazon on conditions, with reasons to follow
- First published
- · version 1 · updated
What happened
The Competition Appeal Tribunal issued a ruling dated 13 October 2026 on the application by the Association of Consumer Support Organisations Limited (ACSO) for a collective proceedings order against Amazon.com, Inc., Amazon Europe Core S.À.R.L., Amazon EU S.À.R.L, Amazon UK Services Ltd and Amazon Payments UK Limited. ACSO filed its application on 14 August 2025 under s. 47B of the Competition Act 1998, alleging that Amazon applied price parity policies to third-party sellers on its UK marketplace infringing Chapter I and Chapter II of the CA 1998 and (prior to 31 December 2020) Articles 101 and 102 TFEU. The Tribunal states it is satisfied ACSO can be authorised as class representative provided specified conditions are met, and that certification should be on an opt-out basis. The conditions concern ACSO's hourly fee and daily cap, a revised litigation budget, and amendments to the Litigation Funding Agreement dated 16 April 2025; they also address expert and counsel arrangements in the joint stage 1 trial on market definition, dominance and liability listed for 25 April 2028. The ruling was issued urgently given the imminent case management conference in the related Hammond and Stephan actions. ACSO must tell the Tribunal within four weeks whether it intends to pursue its application on this basis, and if so provide a revised budget and revised Litigation Funding Agreement by the same date. The ruling states that the Tribunal's reasons will follow in a separate judgment, which will also address Amazon's application for summary judgment and/or to strike out the part of ACSO's claim alleging breach of Chapter I CA 1998.
Why it matters
The ruling adds a third opt-out collective proceeding against Amazon group companies in the UK, alongside the Hammond consumer action and the Stephan merchant action, which the Tribunal says it is jointly case managing. It illustrates how the CAT conditions certification on funding arrangements, fee caps and expert evidence coordination before a class representative is authorised, and it sets a timetable for ACSO to confirm whether it proceeds. For claimants, defendants and funders, it is a live example of CPO-stage case management rather than any finding on liability or quantum.
What remains unresolved
The Tribunal's reasons are to follow in a separate judgment, which will also address Amazon's summary judgment and/or strike-out application on the Chapter I claim. ACSO has not yet confirmed whether it will pursue its application on the conditions set out, and its revised litigation budget and funding agreement are not yet before the Tribunal. Any appeal or finality of the ruling is not stated in the document. The joint stage 2 trial on causation, quantum of overcharge and pass-on has not been listed.
Sources
- 1749/7/7/25 Association of Consumer Support Organisations Ltd v (1) Amazon.com, Inc., (2) Amazon Europe Core S.À.R.L., (3) Amazon EU S.À.R.L, (4) Amazon U.K. Services Ltd., and (5) Amazon Payments U.K. Limited
United Kingdom · Official / primary · Judgment · published 13 October 2026 · en · checked 14 October 2026Cited at: A. Introduction, paragraph 1; A. Introduction, paragraph 1; A. Introduction, paragraph 2; A. Introduction, paragraph 2; A. Introduction, paragraph 3; A. Introduction, paragraph 3; A. Introduction, paragraph 3; B. ACSO's Application for a Collective Proceedings Order, paragraph 4; B. ACSO's Application for a Collective Proceedings Order, paragraph 4(a)-(b); B. ACSO's Application for a Collective Proceedings Order, paragraph 4(c)(i)-(ii); B. ACSO's Application for a Collective Proceedings Order, paragraph 5(a); B. ACSO's Application for a Collective Proceedings Order, paragraph 5(b); B. ACSO's Application for a Collective Proceedings Order, paragraph 5(b)(i)-(ii); B. ACSO's Application for a Collective Proceedings Order, paragraph 6; B. ACSO's Application for a Collective Proceedings Order, paragraph 7; B. ACSO's Application for a Collective Proceedings Order, paragraph 8; Cover page and B., paragraph 9
Editorial score 0.760 — how it was computed
| Dimension | 0–5 | Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| significance | 4 | CAT ruling conditionally authorising an opt-out CPO against Amazon group companies in the UK, adding a third case to two already certified Amazon actions; no amounts awarded. Notes: reasons to follow. |
| novelty | 4 | New CPO-stage decision in the ACSO action; not in existing records or published stories index; no prior item on this proceeding. |
| practical | 3 | Sets certification conditions on fees, budget, funding agreement and expert coordination, plus a four-week confirmation deadline and listed trial dates; useful for collective-claim practitioners. |
| coverage_gap | 3 | Contributes current UK CAT collective-proceedings coverage from a primary official source; the published index holds no GB Amazon CPO item. |
| timeliness | 5 | Ruling dated 13 October 2026, observed 14 October 2026, the day before the listed joint case management conference in the related actions. |
score = Σ weight × dimension/5; weights 35/25/20/10/10. See methodology. Not a fundability or investment score.
Story ID STORY-2026-000004 · Release REL-20261104-053043087 · JSON · Report a correction