A federal judge has denied class certification to indirect purchasers of eggs in a long-running case alleging egg purchasers engaged in price-fixing in violation of state and federal antitrust laws.

U.S. District Judge Gene E.K. Pratter of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania ruled members of the indirect purchaser class in In re Processed Egg Products Antitrust Litigation could not show their proposed class was easily ascertainable, that common issues predominated their claims and that their proposed class was manageable.

Pratter also rejected certification of the injunction class, or those seeking an injunction under the federal Clayton Antitrust Act. But she gave that putative class the ability to renew their motion for class certification to better show the defendants were acting in a manner that affected the entire class, thus making an injunction feasible.