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Competition
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May 22, 2013
9th Circ. Won't Revive BofA Debit Card Fee Suit
A proposed class of Bank of America NA customers failed Wednesday to revive their suit over the bank's service fees for payroll debit cards, after the Ninth Circuit upheld a lower court's ruling that the National Bank Act preempts the suit's state law fraud and unfair competition claims.
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May 22, 2013
Brazil's New Merger Control Regime Passes Antitrust Tests
Brazil's competition watchdog has cleared its first two mergers requiring remedies since the country overhauled its merger control regime nearly a year ago, demonstrating that the agency can quickly review more complicated transactions in close cooperation with other international enforcers.
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May 22, 2013
Fla. Health Clinic Director Gets 9 Years, $24M For Fraud
A Miami federal judge on Wednesday sentenced a former health care clinic director and licensed therapist to more than nine years in prison and a personal judgment of nearly $25 million for his role in a $63 million Medicare and Medicaid fraud case.
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May 22, 2013
Sens. Push ITC Against Import Bans Over Essential Patents
Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., urged the U.S. International Trade Commission on Tuesday against allowing companies to use their standard-essential patents to block the import of rivals' products, saying that could undermine the standard-setting process.
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May 22, 2013
DOJ Wants Loss Findings In UBS Bid-Rigging Case OK'd
The U.S. Department of Justice urged a New York federal court Wednesday to ignore challenges to the government's determination of losses caused by three former UBS AG executives convicted of rigging bids on municipal bond investments.
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May 22, 2013
NLRB Poster Ruling Dooms Net Neutrality, Verizon Says
Verizon Inc. on Wednesday told the D.C. Circuit that its recent decision striking down a National Labor Relations Board rule compelling employers to display posters about workers' right to unionize should likewise prevent the Federal Communications Commission from applying its controversial net neutrality rules.
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May 22, 2013
Penguin To Pay $75M To Settle States' E-Book Antitrust Claims
Pearson PLC's Penguin Group USA Inc. has agreed to pay $75 million to resolve allegations, lodged by state attorneys general and a proposed consumer class, that it conspired with other publishers and Apple Inc. to fix e-book prices, Pearson said Wednesday.
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May 22, 2013
9th Circ. Squashes MGA Suit Over Robot Co.'s Toy Bug Claims
The Ninth Circuit on Tuesday affirmed a lower court ruling tossing MGA Entertainment Inc.’s lawsuit alleging Innovation First Inc. engaged in an anti-competitive scheme by making false statements about the design for a robotic insect toy, ruling IFI lacked jurisdictional ties with California for the suit to proceed.
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May 22, 2013
Hogan Lovells Partner To Run NY AG's Antitrust Unit
New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman has tapped a Hogan Lovells partner to serve as chief of the state's antitrust bureau, the AG's office said Tuesday.
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May 21, 2013
Incoming UK Antitrust Chief Vows More Efficiency
The U.K.'s Office of Fair Trading on Tuesday named four new directors to lead its cartels, mergers and economics units as the incoming leaders of the country's new competition regime continued to vow faster, more efficient enforcement.
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May 21, 2013
Rehab Co. Can't Use Public Disclosure Bar To Duck FCA Suit
A Missouri federal judge refused Monday to boot a relator from a False Claims Act suit accusing RehabCare Group Inc. of paying kickbacks for Medicare referrals, ruling that the relator — a competitor of RehabCare — had not solely relied on public information to bring the suit.
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May 21, 2013
Starbucks, Wal-Mart Reject $7B Swipe Fee Settlement
Nineteen of the nation's largest retailers, including Starbucks Corp. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc., announced Tuesday that they would opt out of a $7.25 billion settlement intended to resolve multidistrict antitrust litigation alleging Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. charged excessive fees to merchants that accept the companies' cards.
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May 21, 2013
EU Oil Price-Fixing Probe Could Rival Libor Scandal
The European Commission's probe of alleged manipulation of crude oil benchmark prices has expanded beyond major oil companies to include energy trading firms, in a crackdown experts say could echo the ongoing Libor scandal in both its sprawling scope and the avalanche of litigation it could bring from energy consumers.
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May 21, 2013
Kolon Asks 4th Circ. To Ax $920M DuPont Trade Secrets Award
Kolon Industries Inc. on Friday asked the Fourth Circuit to overturn a $920 million judgment, saying DuPont Co. should have been forced to individually address each trade secret it alleged Kolon had pilfered and the trial judge should have recused himself from the case and a related antitrust suit.
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May 21, 2013
Alioto Can't Unfreeze $28M LCD Fee Cut From Escrow
A California federal judge Monday refused lawyer Joseph M. Alioto's attempt to unfreeze $28.2 million in attorneys' fees for liquid crystal display multidistrict, price-fixing litigation while third party LFG National Capital LLC's lawsuit over a lien against his firm is still pending.
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May 21, 2013
Chimei Inks Initial Deal In Retailers' LCD Price-Fixing Case
Target Corp., Sears Roebuck and Co. and several other retailers in multidistrict litigation accusing a slew of electronics makers of fixing the price of liquid crystal display panels said Tuesday that they had reached a preliminary deal with Chimei Innolux Corp. to settle the dispute.
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May 21, 2013
Highmark Says UPMC Can't Fight Sanctions In Antitrust Row
Highmark Inc. on Tuesday defended its bid for sanctions against The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in the contentious antitrust battle over Highmark’s acquisition of West Penn Allegheny Health System Inc., saying UPMC has created an “alternate universe” by staunchly opposing the sanctions.
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May 21, 2013
Denso Execs To Plead Guilty In Auto Parts Cartel Probe: DOJ
Two more executives at Japan's Denso Corp. have agreed to cop to their roles in international plots to fix prices for auto parts and to serve more than a year in prison, the U.S. Department of Justice said Tuesday.
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May 21, 2013
Q&A With Dow Lohnes' Parker Erkmann
Although aviation is the quintessential global industry, arcane laws prevent the flow of capital across international borders and constrain airlines’ ability to organize themselves in the manner they believe to be the most efficient, says Parker Erkmann, a partner with Dow Lohnes PLLC and former attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division.
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May 20, 2013
Strine Tells Wal-Mart To Dig Deeper For Mexican Bribery Docs
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. must conduct a more detailed search for documents requested by an institutional investor seeking information about how the retailer's board handled allegations of bribery by its Mexican affiliate, Delaware Chancellor Leo E. Strine Jr. said Monday.
Expert Analysis
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Corporate Leniency Should Come With A Warning Label
When a client comes to the antitrust doctor with a case of “cartelitis," there is often a good news/bad news discussion. The benefits of the corporate leniency “cure” are well known, but the patient must understand the long list of unpleasant side effects before proceeding. And, in some situations, the best option may be to seek an alternative treatment, says Robert Connolly of DLA Piper.
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Bazaarvoice-PowerReviews Merger Case: Where's The Beef?
Reading the U.S. Department of Justice's complaint challenging the consummated merger between Bazaarvoice Inc. and PowerReviews Inc. reminds me of the old Wendy’s commercial in which a little old lady looks at a tiny fast-food hamburger and asks, “Where’s the beef?” The absence of actual evidence of anti-competitive impact sits at odds with successful post-merger challenges, says David Balto of the Law Offices of David A. Balto.
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4 UK Bribery Act Myths — Debunked
The U.K. Bribery Act is somewhat complicated. Not surprisingly, therefore, misperceptions have arisen regarding its provisions, especially regarding the requirements, scope and exclusivity of Section 7 corporate liability, says Eli Richardson of Bass Berry & Sims PLC.
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Rise Of The Machines — Predictive Coding Goes Mainstream
The pros of using predictive coding far outweigh the cons. Given the heavy pressure on law firms and in-house counsel to reduce discovery costs, as well as the Justice Department's recent stance on the subject, it appears predictive coding will continue to emerge from the obscure world of legal technology to the mainstream of legal practice, say Michael Moscato and Myles Bartley of Curtis Mallet-Prevost Colt & Mosle LLP.
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Unprecedented FCPA Wake-Up Call For US Broker-Dealers
The extraordinary criminal bribery charges against two registered representatives of a U.S. broker-dealer and a high-level Venezuelan government official highlight that a broker-dealer’s anti-money laundering procedures, as well as oversight of their registered people, should have a Foreign Corrupt Practices Act component if the firm is doing international business, say attorneys with Duane Morris LLP.
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5 Overlooked Reasons To Be Class Rep In An Antitrust Suit
In many circumstances in antitrust litigation, standing up as a class representative may be an effective way to protect the company’s interests while assuring that it and other victims of anti-competitive behavior receive the monetary recovery they deserve, say Kellie Lerner and Ryan Marth of Robins Kaplan Miller & Ciresi LLP.
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Libor Litigation Must Overcome Significant Obstacles
When U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald dismissed a consolidated, multidistrict batch of antitrust and racketeering suits in Manhattan earlier this spring, she suggested plaintiffs seeking to recover from banking giants at the heart of the interest rate-fixing scandal might have better luck with securities fraud claims. But those plaintiffs will need to be lucky indeed. Two recent developments show that obstacles are inherent and, perhaps, insurmountable, say attorneys with Choate Hall & Stewart LLP.
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More DOJ Use Of Cooperating Witnesses In Corruption Cases
The emergence of a cooperating witness begins to complete the puzzle of the scheme to defraud and catapults the investigation to new heights. A recent arrest by the FBI in an ongoing Foreign Corrupt Practices Act investigation appears to follow this same modus operandi, says Douglas Small of Berkeley Research Group LLC.
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4 Takeaways From 2nd Highest FCPA Penalty
A New York federal court recently entered a final judgment against a former Siemens AG executive for his alleged role in a purported $100 million bribery scheme for Siemens to obtain a $1 billion contract from Argentina. Third-party sham contracts continue to be a prevalent theme in the alleged facts contained in corruption enforcement filings and resolutions, say attorneys with Fulbright & Jaworski LLP.
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Calif. To Draw The Lines In Disparagement Liability
The California Supreme Court's upcoming decision in Hartford Casualty Insurance Co. v. Swift Distribution Inc. will resolve a hot debate about the scope of implied disparagement liability under California law, likely determining whether insurers must defend lawsuits involving allegations of intellectual property infringement, unfair competition and false advertising, says Tyler Gerking of Farella Braun & Martel LLP.