CEOs ordered to testify in DHL dispute
A federal judge ordered top executives of Deutsche Post and DHL Worldwide Express to testify in a dispute over cargo carrier DHL Airways Inc.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the ruling by Ronnie Yoder, the Department of Transportation’s chief administrative law judge, is a win for FedEx Corp. and United Parcel Services Inc.
FedEx and UPS both had argued that testimonies from top executives are needed to determine whether DHL Airways is in violation of federal laws that limit ownership of U.S. airlines by foreign companies, the Journal reported. Deutsche Post of Bonn, Germany, owns a 25 percent voting stake, and DHL Worldwide Express of Brussels controls the DHL delivery network.
The chief executives tried to quash the subpoenas, saying they were in violation of international law. In the ruling, however, the judge said the DOT “must be able to issue and enforce subpoenas to those who have an interest in putative U.S. air carriers.”
