Pilot Customers Lose Bid To Have One Judge Oversee Lawsuits

A federal judicial panel has denied a request by trucking companies to have one judge preside over numerous lawsuits filed against the truck-stop chain owned by the family of Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam and Republican Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam. The panel says consolidating the cases would delay settlement proceedings over fraudulent fuel rebates by Pilot Flying J. The company last month agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit in Arkansas,by offering to reimburse with interest all the money trucking companies were owed since 2005. Attorneys for other trucking companies suing Pilot have called the settlement rushed and inadequate.