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Competition
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May 07, 2024
Amazon Says Zulily Lacks Standing To Bring Antitrust Claims
Amazon is asking a Washington federal court to throw out now-defunct online retailer Zulily's lawsuit accusing it of using its monopoly power to shut out competition from other online retailers, arguing that Zulily merely "parrots" allegations made by regulators and has singled out "plainly procompetitive practice."
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May 07, 2024
Colo. Judge Iffy On DOJ's Missive In Kroger Merger Challenge
A Colorado state judge said he was unsure Tuesday about how to handle the Department of Justice's recent filing defending the state's authority to challenge Kroger's $24 billion merger with Albertsons, as Kroger claimed federal regulators were flip-flopping their antitrust stance.
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May 07, 2024
Tax Software Co. Still Can't Trim Rival's Trade Secrets Suit
A corporate-focused tax preparation software company still can't pare back a suit alleging that it poached workers from its rival's recently acquired company, a Pennsylvania federal judge ruled Tuesday.
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May 07, 2024
$55M Hospital Merger Suit Deal OK'd, UHC Objection Rejected
An Illinois federal judge has given final approval to a $55 million class settlement, with $23.5 million in legal costs and attorney fees, resolving patient antitrust claims over a NorthShore University HealthSystem merger, all while finding that United Healthcare Services had no standing to object to the deal.
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May 07, 2024
Hytera Sanctions Show Strength Of Antisuit Injunctions
The Seventh Circuit's decision upholding $1 million a day in sanctions against Hytera Communications for violating an order to drop trade secrets and copyright litigation in China highlights the difficulty for lawyers when working alongside Chinese courts, while affirming to patent attorneys how powerful antisuit injunctions can be.
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May 07, 2024
Apple Seeks To Block 'Hopeless' £853M Battery Class Action
Apple urged an appeals court on Tuesday to allow it to challenge a £853 million ($1 billion) proposed class action that accuses it of concealing problems with batteries in the phones of 24 million customers, arguing there is no evidence to support the "hopeless" claim.
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May 06, 2024
Judge Weighs Discovery Need On McD's No-Poach Standard
No-poach antitrust litigation against McDonald's is getting back underway in Illinois federal court following the U.S. Supreme Court's refusal of the fast food giant's appeal, spurring the district court judge to consider whether more discovery might be needed to determine the appropriate standard that will govern the case.
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May 06, 2024
Judge Turns Down Realtek's Patent 'Conspiracy' Case
A California federal judge has found that Taiwanese chipmaker Realtek can't use the federal courts to sue one of its major rivals for allegedly using a "bounty" to fund "patent troll" litigation against it because that doesn't break any federal antitrust laws.
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May 06, 2024
Fed Law Doesn't Preempt Colo.'s Kroger Deal Challenge: DOJ
The U.S. Department of Justice weighed in on Kroger and Alberton's arguments that the Colorado attorney general should not be able to challenge their national merger, arguing instead that states have an important solo role and there is nothing stopping a state court judge from blocking a deal regionally.
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May 06, 2024
Biotech Co. Wants To Appeal Red Cross Antitrust Immunity
A biotech company has told a Massachusetts federal court that giving the American Red Cross immunity from claims that it smothered competition in the platelet bacteria mitigation market is unprecedented and leaves the organization free to fix prices or buy up its competitors.
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May 06, 2024
FCC Only Commits To Normal Review Of Soros-Audacy Deal
The FCC has informed two Republican lawmakers worried about Soros Fund Management's acquisition of an ownership interest in radio station owner Audacy that it will conduct a regular license review, but stopped short of promising the foreign ownership review that the legislators want due to their concerns about the fund's "deeply partisan" billionaire owner.
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May 06, 2024
Paul Weiss Lands M&A Pro Who Sees Strong Deals Pipeline
James "Jim" Langston has joined Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison LLP as a partner in its mergers and acquisitions practice in New York, telling Law360 the move presented an irresistible opportunity to team up with attorneys he previously admired from across the bargaining table.
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May 06, 2024
Fashion Cos. Aim To Make FTC Define Market In Merger Suit
Fashion companies Tapestry Inc. and Capri Holdings Ltd. have asked a New York federal court to order the Federal Trade Commission to define the proposed relevant market in its suit attempting to block the companies' planned $8.5 billion merger, saying they need a specific definition of the market in order to properly defend the deal.
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May 06, 2024
Chamber's Noncompete Challenge On Hold For Earlier Case
A Texas federal court has paused the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's case challenging the Federal Trade Commission's pending ban on noncompetes and encouraged the group to join a case filed a day earlier by tax services and software company Ryan LLC.
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May 06, 2024
Ga. Judge Blows Whistle On Football Squad's League Flip
After a false start last month, a Georgia federal judge on Monday granted an indoor football league's request to block one of its former teams from jumping ship and competing in the rival Arena Football League, adding to the AFL's growing troubles just two weeks into its season.
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May 03, 2024
Meta Asks 9th Circ. To Revisit Predominance In Ad Class Cert.
Meta Platforms Inc. on Friday asked the Ninth Circuit to take a fresh look at a split panel decision affirming certification of a damages class of potentially millions of advertisers who were allegedly deceived about Facebook's "potential reach" tool, taking issue with the panel majority's "sweeping" interpretation of the predominance requirement.
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May 03, 2024
Judge Asks About Ad Quality As Google Search Trial Wraps
The D.C. federal judge overseeing the government's search monopolization case against Google peppered attorneys from both sides on Friday during the final day of trial arguments about how to address Google's contention that it raises ad prices to coincide with product improvements.
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May 03, 2024
Hospital In Novant Merger Beset By Staff Turnover, Court Told
The Federal Trade Commission and two healthcare companies used witness testimony Friday to paint competing pictures of a North Carolina hospital at the center of a $320 million merger dispute: one in which the hospital has focused on making quality improvements, and another where it's been plagued by poor ratings and high staff turnover.
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May 03, 2024
Goldman Settles Decade-Old Metal-Rigging Class Action
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has settled a decade-old putative class action claiming the investment bank and others conspired to manipulate platinum and palladium market values, according to a Friday filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
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May 03, 2024
DOJ Seeks Info Sharing With Texas In Google Ad Tech Case
The U.S. Department of Justice objected on Friday to a Virginia magistrate judge's refusal to coordinate discovery in its suit accusing Google of monopolizing key digital advertising technology with a similar case from state enforcers pending in Texas, contending the information sharing is needed to maintain a level playing field.
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May 03, 2024
Google Blasts Epic's Post-Verdict Play Store Reforms Bid
Google is hitting back at Epic Games' proposed injunction following its jury win on antitrust claims related to the Google Play Store and Android apps, telling a California federal judge Thursday that Epic's proposed rules cover conduct that was not presented to the jury and is "purely hypothetical."
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May 03, 2024
Chamber Blasts FTC Bid For Member IDs In Noncompete Suit
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is defending its ability to represent anonymous members in its Texas federal suit challenging the Federal Trade Commission's pending noncompete ban, arguing that the FTC's attempt to block that representation is "radical and unprecedented."
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May 03, 2024
EU OKs Nippon-US Steel Deal As DOJ Causes Delayed Close
The European Commission on Friday indicated via an annotation on its merger review page that it has given Nippon Steel's controversial $14.9 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel its unconditional approval, a move that comes just a day after the parties announced the deal would be delayed due to further scrutiny from the U.S. Department of Justice.
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May 03, 2024
Colo. Jury Hits Berkshire Unit With $7M Monopoly Verdict
A Colorado federal jury on Friday awarded the rival of a Berkshire Hathaway-owned construction supplier $6.7 million for the larger company's monopolistic practices, hours after a judge scolded the Berkshire company's lawyer because he "crossed a line" during closings.
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May 03, 2024
Off The Bench: DraftKings, FIFA Warning, Charity Turmoil
In this week's Off The Bench, DraftKings blocks a former executive from working at an emerging rival in the U.S., FIFA's transfer rules get flagged as a potential antitrust breach and the nonprofit marshaling donations to NFL safety Damar Hamlin sues its former counsel over media leaks.
Expert Analysis
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Earnout Contract Considerations After NC Good Faith Ruling
The North Carolina Supreme Court's recent Value Health Solutions v. Pharmaceutical Research decision, holding the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing did not apply in an earnout dispute related to an asset sale, demonstrates the need for practitioners to pay careful attention to milestone concepts in M&A transactions, says Benjamin Hicks at Wagner Hicks.
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Reading Between The Lines Of HHS' National Lab Opinion
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General recently rejected a national laboratory's request to pay a referring lab to process specimens, but the request might have been an attempt to exploit the OIG's advisory opinion process for a competitive advantage, says Mary Kohler at Kohler Health Law.
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ITC Ban On Apple Watch Could Still Be Reversed
The U.S. International Trade Commission's recent final decision that the Apple Watch infringed two patents owned by Masimo Corp. was a rare instance of a popular consumer product being hit with an absolute importation ban, but it's possible that President Joe Biden could assert his power to reverse the ITC decision, says Benjamin Horton at Marshall Gerstein.
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Attorneys, Law Schools Must Adapt To New Era Of Evidence
Technological advancements mean more direct evidence is being created than ever before, and attorneys as well as law schools must modify their methods to account for new challenges in how this evidence is collected and used to try cases, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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Biden Admin's M&A Rhetoric Outpaces Enforcement Numbers
Despite the Biden administration's rhetoric about the need to reinvigorate antitrust efforts, merger enforcement actions by the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division are at 20-year lows, with the agencies opting for deterrence instead, says Ryan Quillian at Covington.
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Best Practices For Cos. Navigating US-China Investigations
Given recent enforcement trends and the broad jurisdictional reach of U.S. laws, companies with operations in China must enhance their compliance programs in order to balance new corporate enforcement expectations with Chinese data protection and privacy requirements, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.
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Tips For Litigating Against Pro Se Parties In Complex Disputes
Litigating against self-represented parties in complex cases can pose unique challenges for attorneys, but for the most part, it requires the same skills that are useful in other cases — from documenting everything to understanding one’s ethical duties, says Bryan Ketroser at Alto Litigation.
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5 Ways To Leverage Recent DOJ 'Safe Harbor' M&A Policy
Companies can take a series of practical steps both before and after closing to gain maximum advantage from the recently announced U.S. Department of Justice merger and acquisition safe harbor policy and minimize enforcement risk, say Jonny Frank and Jeremy Hirsch at StoneTurn.
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Get Ready For Calif.'s Expanded Restrictive Covenant Ban
California recently passed the second of two new laws that together largely prohibit restrictive covenants, even for certain out-of-state employers — and since there's not much time before the statutes become effective, now is the time for companies to revisit how their confidential information will be protected, says Russell Beck at Beck Reed.
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Pro Bono Work Is Powerful Self-Help For Attorneys
Oct. 22-28 is Pro Bono Week, serving as a useful reminder that offering free legal help to the public can help attorneys expand their legal toolbox, forge community relationships and create human connections, despite the challenges of this kind of work, says Orlando Lopez at Culhane Meadows.
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Avoiding Bribery, Corruption And Sanctions Risks In Int'l M&A
Given the evolving merger and acquisition landscape — as evidenced by the Justice Department’s recently announced safe harbor policy — acquirers conducting international transactions must build bribery, anti-corruption and sanctions risk considerations squarely into their due diligence processes, say Brian Markley and Jennifer Potts at Cahill Gordon.
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What To Watch As The FCC Leans Into National Security
Information and communications technology and services operators and investors should keep a close eye on the Federal Communications Commission's increasing activity in national security matters, which could slow transactions and subject providers to additional oversight, say David Plotinsky and Patricia Cave at Morgan Lewis.
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Series
Playing In A Rock Cover Band Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Performing in a classic rock cover band has driven me to hone several skills — including focus, organization and networking — that have benefited my professional development, demonstrating that taking time to follow your muse outside of work can be a boon to your career, says Michael Gambro at Cadwalader.
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FTC, DOL Collab Marks New Labor Market Enforcement Era
The Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Labor’s recent agreement to share information and coordinate investigations, coupled with new premerger rules and merger guidelines, underscores the paradigm shift underway to use the full authority of administrative agencies for worker protection, say Jeetander Dulani and Bill Kearney at Stinson.
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Series
The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Espinosa On 'Lincoln Lawyer'
The murder trials in Netflix’s “The Lincoln Lawyer” illustrate the stark contrast between the ethical high ground that fosters and maintains the criminal justice system's integrity, and the ethical abyss that can undermine it, with an important reminder for all legal practitioners, say Judge Adam Espinosa and Andrew Howard at the Colorado 2nd Judicial District Court.