Opinion ID: 543769
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Evidence Tending to Exclude Possibility of Independent Action

Text: 43 Because the evidence of the existence of a conspiracy among the brokers in Milwaukee is ambiguous, the plaintiff may survive summary judgment only by putting forth evidence that tends to exclude the possibility that the defendants were pursuing ... independent interests. Gibson v. Greater Park City Co., 818 F.2d 722, 724 (10th Cir.1987). 44 According to Market Force, [t]he lame nature of the excuses the companies muster for their referral policies is circumstantial evidence that the policies were adopted for other reasons. The reasonable inference is that the companies' real motivation was their predatory intent to drive buyers' brokers from the market before they could establish a foothold. Appellant's Br. at 43. However, in her affidavit, Joann Glawe of Wauwatosa enumerated several specific reasons for adopting a referral policy regarding buyers' brokers, including (1) that Wauwatosa paid the listing sales associate a greater commission in a sale involving Market Force, or allocated the gross commission among the listing and selling brokers and paid a referral fee to Market Force; (2) that a selling broker may still be involved in the transaction, as in the case of a sale generated from an open house; and (3) that a listing sales associate must do more work when there is no selling broker. 10 R.67 at 4-7. The district court concluded that there were plausible reasons for the firms each to adopt a policy about buyers' brokers. The court noted that Wauwatosa and Coldwell Banker put forth independent business reasons ... [which were] not economically irrational. 706 F.Supp. at 1394. We agree. Market Force has not met its burden of providing specific factual support for its allegations of conspiracy tending to show that the defendant was not acting independently. Richards v. Neilsen Freight Lines, 810 F.2d 898, 902 (9th Cir.1987). Accordingly, we cannot say that there is any genuine issue of triable fact requiring the reversal of summary judgment.