Everyone should shy away from John Deere. They are THE MOST unfriendly company in agriculture when it comes to repairing their machinery and are facing mounting lawsuits over it. The agricultural "Right To Repair" movement is due in no small part to John Deere's attitude and actions on repairing their stuff. They are about as bad as Tesla.

'Nov 27 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Monday said Deere & Co must face claims from crop farms and farmers that the agricultural machinery maker has unlawfully conspired to restrict services for maintenance and repair. U.S. District Judge Iain Johnston in Rockford, Illinois, rejected Deere's effort to dismiss consolidated lawsuits accusing the Moline, Illinois-based company of violating U.S. antitrust law.

The judge said the plaintiffs had met legal thresholds to pursue their claims.

"According to the complaint's allegations, Deere has the ultimate control of the repair services market," Johnston wrote in his 89-page order. "These allegations are not mere legal conclusions. The complaint is chock-full of factual allegations to support this conclusion."

Deere has denied the allegations and will have a chance at a later stage in the case to dispute the merits of the farmers' claims.

A Deere spokesperson and attorneys for the company at Jones Day on Monday did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

A lead plaintiffs' attorney in the case, Daniel Hedlund of law firm Gustafson Gluek in Minneapolis, said they "look forward to continuing to pursue the claims of their farmer clients in this right to repair antitrust case."

The case is part of a growing push from consumers and others challenging restrictions on maintenance and repair. A U.S. judge in California this month dismissed a right-to-repair case against Tesla but said drivers could refile an amended complaint.'

www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/de...-repair-lawsuits-judge-rules-2023-11-27/