Competition

  • March 26, 2024

    Meta, Porn Stars Fight Over Fate Of OnlyFans Suit

    Meta traded barbs with adult entertainment performers about how to end a suit claiming the social media giant conspired with OnlyFans to boost the risqué platform over competitors, with the performers fighting to drop their California federal court allegations in a way that they could still be refiled.

  • March 26, 2024

    Deal Holdout HomeServices Can't Undo Sellers' Class Cert.

    A Missouri federal judge refused Tuesday to grant class decertification sought by HomeServices of America, the lone holdout still fighting a jury verdict that pushed the National Association of Realtors into a settlement overhauling rules that have effectively restricted how brokers buy and sell homes and how they're paid.

  • March 26, 2024

    Visa, Mastercard Cut Deal In Long-Running Swipe Fee Dispute

    Visa and Mastercard reached a settlement Tuesday that merchants in a long-running antitrust case say will reduce fees by $30 billion over the next several years, while eliminating restrictions on steering customers to cheaper payment options.

  • March 26, 2024

    Pet Drug Maker Faces EU Probe For Axing Pipeline Dog Med

    The European Union's antitrust authority said Tuesday it has launched a probe into whether Zoetis Inc. had illegally blocked competition by acquiring a pipeline product designed to treat pain in dogs and axing a potential rival's deal to sell it.

  • March 26, 2024

    US EV Subsidies Discriminatory, China Tells WTO

    Domestic production rules for U.S. electric vehicles to qualify for subsidies under the Inflation Reduction Act are discriminatory, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said Tuesday, announcing it had filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization.

  • March 26, 2024

    UK Clears £1.2B Atlanta-Markerstudy Insurance Broker Merger

    Britain's antitrust authority said Tuesday it has cleared the planned merger between Atlanta Group and Markerstudy, a deal that values Ardonagh's home and car insurance business at £1.2 billion ($1.5 billion), after finding that the deal will not harm competition in domestic markets.

  • March 25, 2024

    Merchants Hit AmEx With Antitrust Claims Over Its Fee Rules

    American Express faces a proposed merchant class action alleging it violated federal antitrust law by barring businesses from taking certain measures to keep their credit card swipe costs down.

  • March 25, 2024

    Meta Defends Axon Reading To DC Circ. In Privacy Deal Fight

    Meta Platforms Inc. on Friday insisted to the D.C. Circuit that a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling on structural constitutional challenges supports the social media giant's efforts to block the Federal Trade Commission from pursuing changes to a $5 billion privacy settlement.

  • March 25, 2024

    3 Class Claims Follow US Antitrust Suit Against Apple

    Days after the U.S. Department of Justice filed a sweeping antitrust suit against Apple in New Jersey federal court, a group of iPhone buyers are filing suit, launching three separate proposed class actions between Friday and Saturday accusing the tech giant of suppressing innovation in the digital apps, wearables and payments industries through anticompetitive agreements.

  • March 25, 2024

    Cable Biz Org. Seeks Delay Of Title II Regs On Small Providers

    A cable industry group is pressing the Federal Communications Commission to defer by six months imposing "core" Title II rules on small internet service providers if it decides to move ahead with a net neutrality regime in the coming months.

  • March 25, 2024

    Amgen Sues Colorado After Drug's 'Unaffordable' Rating

    Amgen has sued the Colorado Prescription Drug Affordability Review Board in federal court after receiving a determination that one of its arthritis drugs is "unaffordable," saying the board is using unconstitutionally "unguided discretion" to impose arbitrary price controls on patent-protected drugs.

  • March 25, 2024

    PacBio CEO's Words Haunt Patent Invalidity Arguments

    A California federal judge concluded Monday that statements made by the chief executive officer of biotech company Pacific Biosciences to investors at an earnings call undermined the company's invalidity arguments in a patent suit it's facing.

  • March 25, 2024

    FTC Intervenes In Teva-Amneal Row To Push Patent Delisting

    The Federal Trade Commission waded into another patent fight Friday with a New Jersey federal court amicus brief targeting the same Teva Pharmaceuticals asthma inhaler patents it has already included in a roster of over 100 it believes were improperly listed in a key federal database.

  • March 25, 2024

    Varsity Brands Says It Will Pay To Settle Cheer Antitrust Case

    A Tennessee federal judge Monday rejected Varsity Brands' request for a one-week pause on an antitrust lawsuit brought by the parents of cheerleader athletes while the two sides hash out details of a settlement, arguing there are no impending deadlines making a stay necessary.

  • March 25, 2024

    Sunday Ticket Plaintiffs Rip NFL For 'Privileged' Name Games

    The plaintiffs in the antitrust class action against the NFL over its Sunday Ticket broadcast package have accused the league of hiding behind a front-office executive, with an inaccurate job title, to claim that vital documents were privileged and did not need to be disclosed.

  • March 25, 2024

    Qualcomm Halts Plan To Buy Israeli Biz Under Regulatory Heat

    The Federal Trade Commission is celebrating Qualcomm's decision to abandon its attempts at acquiring an Israeli company that makes chips that allow vehicle-to-vehicle communication after too much regulatory pushback.

  • March 25, 2024

    3rd Circ. Won't Rethink AbbVie Privilege Ruling

    The Third Circuit refused Monday to reconsider a ruling that found AbbVie was unable to show a lower court went against precedent or made errors when ordering the drugmaker to turn over attorney communications from a patent case allegedly meant to delay an AndroGel rival.

  • March 25, 2024

    Google Faces Consolidated Trial Over Antitrust Claims

    Google will face a consolidated megatrial combining two lawsuits over alleged anti-competitive violations involving its app store, with the Competition Appeal Tribunal ruling Monday that factual evidence in the two major trials can be heard together.

  • March 25, 2024

    Owens Corning Extends $3.9B Masonite Deal Review

    Construction materials manufacturer Owens Corning has agreed to give antitrust enforcers more time to review a planned $3.9 billion deal to purchase door-maker Masonite International Corp.

  • March 25, 2024

    EU Says Lufthansa Deal Could Harm Air Transport Competition

    Europe's antitrust authority said on Monday that Lufthansa's plan to buy a 41% stake in ITA Airways for €325 million ($352 million) could lead to higher prices and poorer service for passengers taking flights in and out of Italy.

  • March 25, 2024

    Tech Giants Face 1st Probe Under EU Digital Markets Rules

    Alphabet, Apple and Meta are being investigated by the European Union over whether they comply with the Digital Markets Act, the first probes launched under regulations aimed at reining in the power of Big Tech, the bloc's executive arm said Monday.

  • March 22, 2024

    Meta Can't Stop FTC Privacy Tweaks, Feds Say

    The Federal Trade Commission told the D.C. Circuit that Meta Platforms Inc. cannot nitpick the agency's structure to dodge in-house proceedings over proposed revisions to a $5 billion data privacy settlement between the commission and the social media giant.

  • March 22, 2024

    Cheerleading Giant Varsity Spirit Must Face Antitrust Suit

    A Texas federal court has refused to toss a suit accusing Varsity Spirit of working with competitive cheerleading governance bodies to boycott potential rivals and maintain its dominance over the sport.

  • March 22, 2024

    Nexstar Faces $1.2M Fine For 'De Facto' Control Of NY Station

    The Federal Communications Commission has floated a $1.2 million fine against TV giant Nexstar Media Group Inc. after discovering it obtained "de facto" control of a New York City station and exceeded the FCC's 39% national ownership cap.

  • March 22, 2024

    Google Can Arbitrate Collusion Claims While Apple Beats Suit

    For the second time, a California federal judge has forced into arbitration antitrust claims brought by a Golden State crane operator training school accusing Google of paying off Apple to not develop its own search engine while dismissing the rest of the claims against both tech behemoths.

Expert Analysis

  • Lessons For Biosimilar And Biologic Antitrust Litigation

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    Aaron Marks at Cohen Milstein considers emerging ways in which biosimilar markets differ from traditional small-molecule drug markets, and recommends how pharmaceutical antitrust litigators can account for these market dynamics in biosimilar-delay cases.

  • How To Navigate The FTC's New Private Equity Frontier

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    The Federal Trade Commission's recent district court complaint against an anesthesia firm and its private equity partner tests key bounds of the agency's stand-alone authority, and defense strategies can include challenges to both the geographic and the service market fronts, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • Hollywood Labor Negotiations Provide AI Road Map

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    Sigma Khan at Henein Hutchison uses the recent Hollywood labor strikes — one of the first instances of a mass entertainment industry legal conflict where concerns over artificial intelligence's intrusion into the workspace has become a crucial issue — to analyze how litigation, legislation and contracts can aid in a landscape transformation precipitated by AI.

  • Opinion

    Newman Suspension Shows Need For Judicial Reform

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    The recent suspension of U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman following her alleged refusal to participate in a disability inquiry reveals the need for judicial misconduct reforms to ensure that judges step down when they can no longer serve effectively, says Aliza Shatzman at The Legal Accountability Project.

  • Opinion

    Forging A Fair Path For Standard-Essential Patents In India

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    The Delhi High Court's standard-essential patents decision in Intex v. Ericsson has the potential to derail important progress for India's technology industry, so Indian regulators and courts should be developing an SEP licensing ecosystem that inspires and protects innovation, say Brian Scarpelli and Priya Nair at ACT.

  • How Employers Can Navigate NLRB's Pro-Employee Shift

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    The National Labor Relations Board's recent decisions and general counsel memos mark the strong beginning of a trend toward greater pro-employee protections, so employers should proactively engage in risk management by revisiting their handbook policies accordingly, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.

  • Practicing Under DOJ 'Safe Harbor' Policy For M&As

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    The U.S. Justice Department's recently announced safe harbor policy for mergers and acquisitions offers greater specificity and predictability for acquiring companies that need time to self-report violations, but it's important to remember that the new window is not endless, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • A Look At Competition Enforcers' 2026 World Cup Game Plan

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    Ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, competition authorities of the host nations, the U.S., Mexico and Canada, have recently launched a joint initiative to police collusive schemes, setting an example for other countries' cross-border collaboration — so companies pursuing tournament opportunities should take note, say Carsten Reichel and Will Conway at Norton Rose.

  • How And Why Your Firm Should Implement Fixed-Fee Billing

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    Amid rising burnout in the legal industry and client efforts to curtail spending, pivoting to a fixed-fee billing model may improve client-attorney relationships and offer lawyers financial, logistical and stress relief — while still maintaining profit margins, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Independence Needs Defense Amid Political Threats

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    Amid recent and historic challenges to the judiciary from political forces, safeguarding judicial independence and maintaining the integrity of the legal system is increasingly urgent, says Robert Peck at the Center for Constitutional Litigation.

  • How Law Firms Can Use Account-Based Marketing Strategies

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    Amid several evolving legal industry trends, account-based marketing can help law firms uncover additional revenue-generating opportunities with existing clients, with key considerations ranging from data analytics to relationship building, say Jennifer Ramsey at stage LLC and consultant Gina Sponzilli.

  • A Reminder For Drug Cos. To Confirm Orange Book Listings

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    A recent policy statement from the Federal Trade Commission highlights the legal danger that pharmaceutical companies can face for improperly listing patents in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Orange Book, which is also an issue in the context of Hatch-Waxman litigation, say attorneys at Kirkland.

  • Strategic Succession Planning At Law Firms Is Crucial

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    Senior partners' reluctance to retire, the rise of the nonequity partner tier and generational differences in expectations are all contributing to an increasing number of departures from BigLaw, making it imperative for firms to encourage retirement among senior ranks and provide clearer leadership pathways to junior attorneys, says Laura Leopard at Leopard Solutions.

  • The Impact Of Proposed HSR Form Changes On Agency Staff

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    The Federal Trade Commission's recent proposed changes to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Notification and Report Form will have the unintended effect of drastically increasing the burden on agency staff without an appreciable increase in their ability to detect potentially anti-competitive transactions, say Amanda Wait and Andrew Eklund at Norton Rose.

  • FTC's Health Co. Suit Indicates Agency's Private Equity Focus

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    The Federal Trade Commission's latest lawsuit against an anesthesia company and its private equity investor highlights the agency's willingness to regulate the health care industry even when relevant acquisitions are relatively dated or when the controlling entity's economic interest is under 50%, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

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