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As of December 22, 2025, the class-action lawsuit Mike the Printer, Inc. v. Ricoh USA, Inc. (Case No. 2:24-cv-08192) has entered a critical phase. On December 19, 2025, the court officially began the class-certification process, which will decide whether thousands of Ricoh customers can join the lawsuit as part of a consolidated group.
Key Allegations: Systemic Overcharging Practices
The lawsuit, filed in September 2024 by a print shop based in Van Nuys, California, targets Ricoh’s maintenance service contracts. The plaintiff accuses Ricoh of:
- Rate Cap Violations: Regularly exceeding agreed-upon annual rate increases for “per-page” maintenance charges.
- Breach of Contract and Fraud: Misleading customers about maintenance costs and violating unfair competition laws.
Throughout 2025, Ricoh has faced several legal hurdles:
- Motion to Dismiss Denied: In February 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California rejected Ricoh’s attempt to dismiss the case, ruling that the plaintiff’s claims were valid.
- Formal Response: Ricoh formally denied the allegations in March 2025, asserting that its billing practices were legal.
- Expert Testimony Dispute: Late in 2025, Ricoh attempted to exclude the plaintiff’s economic expert, Dr. G. Michael Phillips, from the case, as the parties clashed over how to calculate class-wide damages.
Ricoh’s Broader Legal Challenges
The Mike the Printer case is only one of several legal battles facing Ricoh in late 2025. In November, Ricoh settled two class-action lawsuits involving its 401(k) retirement plan, which had been accused of charging excessive administrative fees. Additionally, Ricoh is challenging the U.S. government’s 2025 tariffs in the U.S. Court of International Trade, claiming the tariffs will cause significant financial harm to its U.S. operations. The forthcoming decision on class certification will be a major turning point, potentially leading to a high-stakes trial with millions of dollars in damages for Ricoh’s U.S. customers.
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