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May 17, 2013
MetroPCS Ditches Challenge To FCC Net Neutrality Regs
MetroPCS Communications Inc., which recently merged with T-Mobile USA Inc., has dropped its challenge in the D.C. Circuit to the Federal Communications Commission's net neutrality rules preventing Internet service providers from blocking or discriminating against legitimate websites, T-Mobile confirmed Friday.
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May 17, 2013
ING Gave Morgan Stanley Kickbacks For 401(k) Biz, Suit Says
An Alabama medical laboratory filed a proposed class action in New York federal court on Friday alleging Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc. encouraged the lab to use ING Life Insurance and Annuity Co. to administer its employees' 401(k) plan because ING paid the brokerage firm extra fees.
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May 17, 2013
Ex-Broker Gets Probation For Muni Bond Bid-Rigging
After cooperating with a sweeping multistate investigation, the former CEO of a New York-based brokerage was sentenced to two years of probation Friday for his role in a municipal bond bid-rigging conspiracy.
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May 17, 2013
FTC Clears Tesoro's $2B Deal For BP Refining Assets
Energy company Tesoro Corp. received a go-ahead Friday from U.S. antitrust regulators for its proposed purchase of BP PLC's Southern California refining and marketing operations, a deal worth more than $2 billion that includes the acquisition of the state's largest oil refinery.
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May 17, 2013
EU, Switzerland Ink Antitrust Cooperation Pact
The European Union and Switzerland have agreed to team up to improve their respective antitrust enforcement efforts, the EU's competition watchdog said Friday.
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May 17, 2013
Highmark Says Policyholders Can't Seek Antitrust Damages
Highmark Inc. on Friday again asked a Pennsylvania federal judge to toss an antitrust class action in which health insurance buyers accuse it of conspiring to stifle competition and inflate rates, arguing that the rates were approved by the Pennsylvania Insurance Department.
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May 17, 2013
Apple Says It Sparked E-Book Competition With Market Entry
Apple Inc. told a New York federal court Thursday that its entry into the e-book market increased competition and that its negotiations with major publishers did not amount to a price-fixing conspiracy, as the U.S. Department of Justice has suggested.
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May 17, 2013
Sen. Wants US To Join UK, EU In Oil Price-Fixing Probes
Official concern over the European Commission's surprise inspections of several oil companies mounted Friday as an Oregon senator urged the U.S. Attorney General to join European agencies, which now include the U.K. Serious Fraud Office, in examining allegations of oil price-fixing that potentially target BP PLC and Statoil ASA.
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May 17, 2013
Wal-Mart Busts Its FCPA Budget By $30M In Q1
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said Thursday it has spent $73 million in the first quarter of the fiscal year dealing with investigations and internal changes stemming from alleged violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, around $30 million more than the retailer expected.
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May 16, 2013
Purdue Puts Generic OxyContin Suits To Rest
Purdue Pharma LP on Thursday settled its suits against KVK-Tech Inc. and Varam Inc. in New York multidistrict litigation over plans to market a generic version of painkiller OxyContin.
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May 16, 2013
Wal-Mart Can't Keep Leaked Docs Out Of Mexico Bribery Suit
A Delaware Chancery judge ruled Thursday that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. can't stop shareholders from using documents leaked into the public domain to support their suit over alleged bribery by its Mexican affiliate, rejecting the chain's contention that the formerly private files were still privileged.
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May 16, 2013
Comcast Antitrust Ruling Offers Hope Despite Dow Loss
In the first major antitrust ruling to apply the U.S. Supreme Court's recent Comcast decision, a judge refused Wednesday to decertify a plaintiffs class and spare The Dow Chemical Co. $1.2 billion in damages. However, the ruling still offers a ray of hope for other defendants in antitrust class actions, attorneys say.
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May 16, 2013
Alioto's $47M LCD Fee Survives, But Loan Fight Continues
The judge overseeing liquid crystal display multidistrict litigation on Tuesday rejected objections to a $47 million attorneys' fee award to the Joseph M. Alioto's law firm based on its dispute with a lender, but cautioned Alioto that the loan fight wasn't over.
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May 16, 2013
US Foodservice Must Yield Docs In $800M Price-Scam MDL
Businesses suing Royal Ahold NV and U.S. Foodservice Inc. over an alleged $800 million price-inflation scheme won access Thursday to documents from an additional 25 people who might have information relevant to the multidistrict litigation in Connecticut federal court.
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May 16, 2013
Athena Blasts Allergan's Competition Claims In Eyelash Fight
Athena Cosmetics Inc. urged the Federal Circuit on Tuesday to reverse a lower court decision banning it from selling its eyelash conditioner, saying the ruling in favor of drugmaker Allergan Inc., which makes its own eyelash growth product, could drastically change the drug and cosmetic marketing industry.
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May 16, 2013
GM Unit Faces Spanish Antitrust Probe Over Spare Parts
Spain's antitrust watchdog said Thursday it would investigate General Motors Co.'s Opel unit to determine if the car company restrained competition on spare auto parts supplied to dealers and authorized mechanics.
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May 15, 2013
Businessman Denies Blocking FCPA Probe Into Mining Co.
A French businessman linked to BSG Resources Ltd. pled not guilty Wednesday to charges that he obstructed a U.S. investigation into bribes the mining company allegedly paid to secure mining rights in Guinea.
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May 15, 2013
Damages Against Dow Upped To $1.2B In Urethane Suit
A Kansas federal court on Wednesday entered judgment in favor of a class of urethane foam buyers who won a $400 million jury verdict against The Dow Chemical Co. in a price-fixing dispute in February, trebling the damages to $1.2 billion.
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May 15, 2013
Wall Street To FCPA Enforcers: Bring It On
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act prosecutors have Wall Street in their crosshairs after suing two traders at New York broker-dealer Direct Access Partners LLC last week, but experts say the hyper-vigilant industry is ready for any clampdown.
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May 15, 2013
EU Court To Hear Telefonica's €152M Antitrust Fine Appeal
The European Union's highest court will weigh Telefonica SA's bid to overturn its €151.9 million ($195.6 million) antitrust fine Thursday, with the Spanish telecommunications giant set to argue that the margin squeeze penalty violated its property rights for its broadband network.
Expert Analysis
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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.
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10 Steps To Effective Anti-Corruption Compliance
In order to implement the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act resource guide's critical instructions for corporate boards, senior executives and compliance professionals for designing an “effective” anti-corruption compliance program, companies must tackle 10 essential tasks, says Michael Volkov of The Volkov Law Group LLC.
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DOJ Biz Review Letter Highlights Patent Pool Concerns
The U.S. Department of Justice's unusual business review letter in response to Intellectual Property Exchange International Inc.'s proposed financial exchange for licensing and trading IP rights serves as a useful reminder of the benefits and drawbacks of the business review letter process and, perhaps, a cautionary note on group patent licensing activities, say William Dolan and Geoffrey Oliver of Jones Day.
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In FCPA Compliance, Don't Forget About The Travel Act
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act guide highlighted the Travel Act and its applicability to FCPA cases. But the Travel Act, which can apply to bribery of foreign officials as well as private individuals, is often misunderstood and underappreciated by companies attempting to maintain robust compliance programs, say HL Rogers and Ellen Crisham of Sidley Austin LLP.