A federal judge has refused to block the planned $6 billion strategic alliance between the U.S. Postal Service and FedEx Corp.
Emery Worldwide Airlines had challenged the legality of the no-bid alliance.
The alliance is also being investigated on anti-trust grounds by the U.S. Justice Department at the request of several members of Congress, including Rep. Dan Burton (R-IN), chairman of the House Government Reform Committee.
So far no results of the probe have been made public. Plans for the alliance were originally revealed in published reports last September and subsequently confirmed by outgoing Postmaster General William J. Henderson.
Officials of the USPS and FedEx said in separate announcements on Wednesday that Emery’s bid to void the agreement had been denied by Judge Christine Miller of the U.S. Court of Claims, and that a formal, public decision will be issued on March 28.
Under that agreement, which goes into effect in August, the USPS will use FedEx’s large jet fleet to transport Priority and Express mail at low rates. In return, the USPS will use its letter carriers to deliver residential FedEx packages weighing up to 70 pounds, but not its overnight parcels.
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