Competition
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Featured
Challengers Gun For DOJ’s CVS-Aetna Deal In Witness Lists
Health care-focused economists and policy experts are the preferred advocates to speak against the U.S. Department of Justice settlement clearing CVS Health's acquisition of Aetna, according to new witness lists in the extraordinary D.C. federal court review of the $69 billion merger.
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April 23, 2019
GE Exec To Head Clifford Chance's Antitrust Practice In DC
Clifford Chance has snagged General Electric's competition law vice president Sharis A. Pozen to help head its global antitrust practice in Washington, D.C., the firm said Tuesday.
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April 23, 2019
'Chickenization' Keeping Beef Prices Down, Ranchers Allege
A cattle ranchers' trade association launched a proposed class action in Illinois federal court on Tuesday accusing meatpackers including industry powerhouses Tyson and JBS of conspiring to keep down cattle prices, helping push the cattle industry toward the level of consolidation already seen in poultry processing.
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April 23, 2019
DOJ Blasts Chinese Cos.' Immunity Arguments In CRT Suit
Two Chinese electronics makers trying to duck a yearslong price-fixing class action over television- and computer-component cathode ray tubes are using readings of immunity for foreign government-owned entities that are either “overly broad” or “overly narrow,” the U.S. Department of Justice told a California federal judge Tuesday.
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April 23, 2019
Allergan Drug Buyers Take One Last Shot At Class Cert.
Purchasers of Allergan's ulcerative colitis drug lodged a last-ditch effort for class certification in their antitrust suit, asking a Massachusetts federal judge Monday to reconsider denying them a chance to rework their bid after an appellate court rejected an earlier iteration.
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April 23, 2019
Huawei Headed To UK Top Court Over License Fees
The U.K. Supreme Court has agreed to hear Huawei's appeal of a hotly contested lower court ruling that upheld licensing terms for mobile technology covered by standard-essential patents, two years after the Chinese tech giant challenged a finding that the rates are fair.
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April 23, 2019
Calsonic To Dish Out $7.9M To End AC Price-Fixing Claims
Japanese auto parts maker Calsonic will pay $7.9 million to end claims it took part in a conspiracy to rig the cost of vehicle air conditioner units, if a Michigan federal judge approves the deal reached with AC buyers.
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April 23, 2019
Nexstar CEO Says Tribune Deal Can't Rely On Eased Rules
Nexstar CEO Perry Sook said Tuesday he’s not depending on a relaxation of FCC media rules to push through his company’s proposed acquisition of Tribune Media Co. Instead, he said the company is working hard to give regulators a structure to which they “can say yes.”
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April 23, 2019
Pet Medicine Cos.’ Suit To Block Rivals’ Tie-Up Tossed
A California federal judge has thrown out pet medicine distributors' renewed challenge to the merger of two rivals, calling it too much like an earlier version that she said failed to make an antitrust case.
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April 23, 2019
Fla. Oncologists Try To Save Antitrust Suit Over Noncompetes
A group of oncologists who claim a cancer treatment company forced them to sign illegal noncompete agreements and created a monopoly for oncology services in Southwest Florida asked a federal court Monday not to dismiss their suit, saying the claims are still timely because of ongoing conduct.
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April 22, 2019
Farmer Fights To Walk From Dicamba MDL On His Terms
An Arkansas farmer has already given Monsanto and BASF all the evidence they need from him, so he shouldn't have to stay against his will in multidistrict litigation over an allegedly crop-damaging herbicide, he told a Missouri federal court Friday.
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April 22, 2019
NCAA Demands Billing Records In $45M Atty Fees Fight
The NCAA is fighting a push for almost $45 million in attorney fees by the legal team that scored a March antitrust victory against the organization in California federal court on behalf of student athletes, saying the players’ lawyers won’t disclose their billing records.
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April 22, 2019
Pfizer VP Returns To DLA Piper As Litigation Partner In DC
Former Pfizer Senior Vice President Carlton Wessel has returned to DLA Piper as a partner in the firm’s litigation practice in Washington, D.C., the firm announced Monday.
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April 22, 2019
CDK Says Auto Dealers Can't Duck Contract Counterclaims
CDK Global has urged an Illinois federal judge not to dismiss its contract breach and computer intrusion counterclaims against some of the auto dealerships suing the company and a rival for allegedly conspiring to monopolize the market for car dealership data.
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April 22, 2019
Indirect Buyers Accept $21M Deal On Water Treatment Claims
Buyers of a water treatment compound have asked a New Jersey federal judge to approve a $21.35 million settlement to resolve antitrust claims against some chemical companies and people accused of plotting to fix prices for the compound.
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April 22, 2019
4 Firms Seek To Lead Ranbaxy Antitrust MDL In Boston
A quartet of firms — Hagens Berman, Hilliard & Shadowen, Lowey Dannenberg and The Dugan Law Firm — hope to co-lead a multidistrict litigation in Massachusetts federal court Monday that accuses pharmaceutical company Ranbaxy of gaining an unfair competitive advantage by improperly securing approval for generic drugs.
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April 22, 2019
Rent-A-Center Nabs $92.5M To End Suit Over Nixed PE Buyout
Rent-A-Center on Monday said former prospective buyer Vintage Capital Management plans to pay $92.5 million to wrap up litigation in Delaware Chancery Court stemming from the private equity firm’s unsuccessful bid to acquire the retail giant last year.
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April 22, 2019
Feds Say Ex-JPMorgan Trader Can’t 'Redraft' Rigging Case
Prosecutors are asking a New York federal judge not to accept a former JPMorgan currency trader’s “redraft” of the indictment charging him with a conspiracy to rig foreign exchange markets.
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April 19, 2019
Lloyd's Syndicates To Pay $22M To End Antitrust Claims
Several Lloyd's of London syndicates have agreed to pay $22 million to settle class claims they were conspiring with insurance brokers to conceal exorbitant commissions and the anti-competitive nature of their market, according to a filing Friday in New Jersey federal court.
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April 19, 2019
Cab Driver Rips Uber's Bid To Toss Unfair Competition Suit
The death of a Boston taxi cab driver who accused Uber of predatory pricing doesn’t mean his proposed class action dies with him, attorneys said Friday, as another cab driver has been named in his place.
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April 19, 2019
Wireless Cos. Urge DC Circ. To Toss FCC's Verizon Fee Ruling
Two wireless providers jointly urged the D.C. Circuit on Friday to reverse a Federal Communications Commission ruling that the roaming rates Verizon charged to local carriers are reasonable, contending the rates aim to quash smaller competitors.
Editor's Picks
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FTC Split Over Staples Deal Shows Merger Review Fissures
The fight by many Democrats to push competition policy in a more populist direction helped spark a row at the Federal Trade Commission this week when members traded barbs over the agency’s split decision allowing Staples and its private equity backer to acquire office supply company Essendant.
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Global Cartel Fines Down For 2nd Year In A Row
The total value of fines levied by global enforcers for cartel conduct last year dropped slightly compared to 2017, but antitrust authorities still doled out significant penalties over both domestic and international activity, according to a report released Thursday by Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP.
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Alito, Gorsuch Question Illinois Brick Precedent
Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch on Monday floated the idea of overruling the high court’s landmark Illinois Brick decision, which limits federal antitrust standing to direct purchasers, during oral arguments in a case accusing Apple Inc. of monopolizing the market for apps sold on its devices.
Expert Analysis
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Rebuttal
Jury Trials, Though In Decline, Are Well Worth Preserving
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In a recent Law360 guest article, the author applauded the disappearance of jury trials as an inefficient, costly mechanism, but in doing so he overlooked the greater value of jury trials for our justice system, says Stephen Susman, executive director of the Civil Jury Project at NYU School of Law.
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A Broader View Of The US Supreme Court Bar
During the past 15 years, three widely read articles bolstered by starstruck media have promulgated the incorrect perception — sorely in need of revision — that the U.S. Supreme Court bar is limited to a handful of elite lawyers, says Lawrence Ebner of Capital Appellate Advocacy.
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What We Heard At The FTC Hearings: Days 20 And 21
The 12th hearing in the Federal Trade Commission’s series on competition in the 21st century reflected substantial evolution in the policy debate over consumer privacy regulation, say attorneys with Perkins Coie.
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Opinion
Jury Trials Are In Decline For Good Reason
A recent Law360 article reported on federal judges bemoaning jury trials' nationwide decline, but these laments are unfounded as jury trials have been replaced by better alternatives, says J.B. Heaton of J.B. Heaton Research.
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Biologic Manufacturers Should Expect Antitrust Scrutiny
Recently filed class actions against AbbVie and various biosimilar manufacturers, alleging that the U.S. Supreme Court's Actavis decision should be applied to supposedly anti-competitive biologic/biosimilar settlement agreements, indicate that the biologic space may be the next hotbed of pharmaceutical antitrust activity, say James Kovacs and Ankur Kapoor of Constantine Cannon.
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Series
Why I Became A Lawyer: A Circuitous Path To The Law
Instead of going to college after high school, I followed in my father’s footsteps and became an electrician. Later I became an electrical engineer, and then an IP attorney. Every twist and turn along the way has made me a better lawyer, says Joseph Maraia of Burns & Levinson.
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Series
Judging A Book: Conrad Reviews 'The Jury Crisis'
In "The Jury Crisis," jury consultant and social psychologist Drury Sherrod spotlights the vanishing jury trial, providing a fascinating canary-in-the-coal-mine warning for lawyers, litigants and society at large, says U.S. District Judge Robert Conrad of the Western District of North Carolina.
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What We Heard At The FTC Hearings: Days 18 And 19
The 11th hearing in the Federal Trade Commission’s series on competition in the 21st century addressed cross-border cooperation. Rebecca Engrav and Jeremy Keeney of Perkins Coie offer some key takeaways.
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Manufacturers Need To Mitigate Risk Of Price Bias Claims
A New Jersey federal court recently set the stage for a Robinson-Patman Act trial in Marjam v. Firestone, which may motivate more resellers to challenge manufacturers' unjustified disparate pricing strategies, say attorneys with K&L Gates.
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Revamping Your Approach To Client Development
As a former general counsel for both public and private companies, my advice to law firm attorneys who want to attract and keep clients is simple — provide certain legal services for free, says Noel Elfant, founder of General Counsel Practice.