| Show Steel Company Sues 2 Over Gray Market Markel PITTSBURGH May 13 UP P l The Jones Laughlin Steel Corp Thursday announced it has filed flIed damage suits in Detroit and Chicago Chicago Chi CM- cago charging two businessmen with illegal megal offers to sell J JL L steel The defendants are Harry C. C Edwards Ed of the Edwards Industrial Industrial Industrial Indus Indus- trial Engineering Detroit and Howard Kimble Chicago described described described de de- de- de scribed by T J JL L as one of Edwards Edwards' Edwards Edwards' Edwards Edwards' Ed Ed- wards' wards associates Edwards and Kimble were charged with offering to sell tons of J L ingots a mon month th for fora a year to Ford Motor Co at what a company statement said was a Ita gray market price of 75 a ton The published mill price at the time was 36 A violation of ot the Robinson-Patman Robinson act and other laws was charged The complaints also charged the defendants claimed to control twice that amount of J L ingots and to control steel produced by other companies companI s. s Damages of not less than J were asked against Kimble No set amount was asked in the suit filed tiled against Edwards Restraining Restraining Restraining Re Re- straining orders w were re sought in each case casc The company statement said At the price said to have been quoted such uch tonnage would have havea a gray market value of more than thana a million dollars a month A company statement said a close business relationship between between between be be- tween Ford and T J JL L was was primarily primarily primarily marily responsible for the sequence of ot events that led to filing of the sui suits ts The complaint said Edwards contacted Fords Ford's purchasing department department de de- with the offer mentioning mentioning mentioning mention mention- ing T J JL L as the manufacturer That information was relayed to the steel company with the result that a J JL L representative sat satin satin satin in on the defendants' defendants presentation The steel corporation declared that it does not sell in ingots and that the defendants are unknown unknown unknown un un- known to Jones Laughlin that no arrangement exists with them or anyone else for sale of T J JL L ingots and that the representations of the defendants are untrue and damaging to the reputation and good will enjoyed by the steel manufacturer |
