NY-Presbyterian Says DOJ's Antitrust Case Is Misguided

By Matthew Perlman

New York-Presbyterian Hospital is pushing back against claims that it blocks cheaper insurance plans through its contracts with insurers, telling a federal court that enforcers are challenging industry-standard contract terms that lower prices and guarantee patient access.

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Live Nation Wants AGs' Discovery To Wait On New Trial Bid

By Bryan Koenig

Live Nation has told a New York federal judge that its bids for a new trial or judgment in its favor should go before state attorneys general to get discovery as they seek the forced divestiture of Ticketmaster to address the live music giant's monopoly.

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Google Seeks End To Antitrust Case From 'Serial Litigants'

By Bonnie Eslinger

Google slammed consumers who brought a suit claiming the tech giant owes them for illegally monopolizing the online search services market, saying they didn't show an antitrust injury and urging a San Francisco federal judge to rule in the company's favor without going to trial.

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Building Owner UDR Wants DC Sanctioned In RealPage Case

By Matthew Perlman

UDR Inc. is asking a Washington, D.C., Superior Court to sanction the district's attorney general's office for allegedly failing to comply with a discovery order in a case accusing RealPage of helping residential building owners use software to inflate rents.

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ProPublica Denied Access To Ranbaxy Antitrust MDL Docs

By Gianna Ferrarin

A Massachusetts federal court denied ProPublica's bid to unseal court filings in settled multidistrict litigation alleging a subsidiary of Indian drugmaker Sun Pharmaceuticals illegally delayed market entry of generic drugs, ruling the nonprofit news organization's request came too late in the case.

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3 Generic Drug Antitrust Deals Totaling $17.9M Get Final Nod

By Aaron Keller

A Connecticut federal judge on Wednesday gave final approval to a $17.9 million generic drug price-fixing settlement between pharmaceutical companies Bausch Health US LLC, Bausch Health Americas Inc., and Lannett Co. Inc. and 48 states, territories, and governments, finding the terms reasonable despite an objection.

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$3.6B Cabinetry Merger Clears FTC Scrutiny

By Bryan Koenig

MasterBrand Inc. and American Woodmark Corp. said they are on track to close MasterBrand Inc.'s $3.6 billion purchase of American Woodmark after clearing an in-depth Federal Trade Commission review.

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Consumers Seek To Widen £1.5B Apple Overcharge Claim

By Sophia Dourou

A group of consumers urged the Competition Appeal Tribunal on Wednesday to extend their successful class action claim against Apple to the date of the ruling that found the technology giant had abused its dominant position by charging excessive and unfair prices.

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Brief

UK Antitrust Watchdog Seeks Views On Danone-Huel Deal

By Irene Madongo

The Competition and Markets Authority invited comments on Wednesday on Danone's anticipated acquisition of local meal-replacement producer Huel Ltd.

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FIFA Corruption Charges Get Officially Tossed

By Stewart Bishop

A New York federal judge signed off Wednesday on the dismissal of charges in the massive FIFA-related corruption dragnet against a former 21st Century Fox executive and an Argentine sports marketing company, months after prosecutors said they were dropping the case.

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Valve Can't Press Pause On Steam Gamers' Arbitrations

By Rachel Riley

A federal judge in Seattle declined Wednesday to block hundreds of video game buyers from arbitrating consumer protection claims against Valve Corp., saying the "multibillion-dollar platform" is relying on a contractual provision that's likely unenforceable because it's "one-sided and overly harsh."

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11th Circ. Told YouTube Copyright Win Doesn't Merit Fees

By Ivan Moreno

A Spanish film production company has urged the Eleventh Circuit to uphold a Florida federal judge's refusal to award YouTube attorney fees after the video platform prevailed in a dispute over pirated movies, arguing that the unsuccessful copyright claims raised a novel legal issue and were brought in good faith.

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BofA Units To Settle Out Of Hedge Fund's Spoofing Suit

By Jon Hill

Bank of America has reached a tentative deal for its broker-dealer units to settle out of a hedge fund's long-running lawsuit over alleged manipulation of a former Canadian pharma company's stock, according to a Tuesday filing in New York federal court.

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Walmart Rips Estee Lauder's 'Vague And Ambiguous' TM Fight

By Dorothy Atkins

Walmart has urged a California federal judge to toss the bulk of Estee Lauder's lawsuit accusing the retail giant of selling infringing beauty products online, arguing the complaint is too "vague and ambiguous" about which products, sellers, listings and legal theories are at issue for the case to proceed.

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Sher Tremonte Hires DOJ Antitrust Litigation Director

By Andrea Keckley

Sher Tremonte announced on Wednesday that it has hired the former litigation director of the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division, touting her work at the helm of historic monopolization and conduct cases.

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Mortgage Co. Ruling Shows Risks Of Broad Noncompetes

The Federal Trade Commission and a Pennsylvania state court recently took actions against Mortgage Connect that demonstrate that overbroad noncompetes may not be worth the regulatory trouble they invite, especially amid heightened federal scrutiny, proliferating state restrictions and increasingly skeptical courts, say attorneys at A&O Shearman.

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Sold Inventory May Drive Tax Treatment Of Tariff Refunds

Companies determining the tax treatment of refunds expected following the U.S. Supreme Court's February decision invalidating tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act should consider whether the tariff costs have already reduced their income considering the cost of goods sold, say attorneys at McDermott.

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And Now A Word From The Panel: An MDL Realignment

With seven multidistrict litigation proceedings initiated so far this year, a review of venue locations suggests a shift away from the East Coast, a seeming reversal of last year's swing in that direction, says Alan Rothman at Sidley.

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Analysis

Meet Biden's Attys Fighting DOJ Release Of Memoir Materials

By Jeff Overley

Former President Joe Biden has selected Hecker Fink LLP lawyers well acquainted with politically charged litigation for his extraordinary new lawsuit accusing the U.S. Department of Justice of orchestrating a congressional inquiry in order to divulge "highly personal" records to the Heritage Foundation.

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Chicago US Atty Revamps Grand Jury Rules After Misconduct

By Parker Quinlan

Chicago's top federal prosecutor announced on Wednesday a new suite of rules for how grand jury investigations are handled after an Illinois federal judge accused the prosecutor's office of misconduct in a case against six immigration activists.

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Pierce Atwood Rips Billionaire's 'Absurd' Suit Over Asset Sale

By Sydney Price

Pierce Atwood and two attorneys urged a Massachusetts federal judge to reject a Ukrainian billionaire's suit blaming them for a $1.8 billion damages order in investor litigation over the billionaire's failed biotech company, saying his own wrongdoing led to the judgment.

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Ex-Judges Urge Court To Scrutinize Trump-IRS Deal

By Jack McLoone

A group of 35 former federal judges pushed for a Florida federal court to reopen President Donald Trump's now-settled $10 billion tax leak case against his own Internal Revenue Service, alleging that Trump and the DOJ deceived the court.

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Trump Taps Ohio Appeals Judge For Federal Bench

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday he's nominating state Judge Matthew Byrne as a U.S. district judge for the Southern District of Ohio.

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Perkins Coie Docs At Issue In Omani Co.'s Malpractice Case

By Sarah Jarvis

An Oman-based screw and nail manufacturer has urged a Washington state judge to force Perkins Coie LLP to hand over a trove of documents related to the firm's past work representing the Middle Eastern company in a U.S. Department of Commerce probe, saying more information is needed to assess the law firm's defenses against claims its mistakes cost the company hundreds of millions of dollars.

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Titan Of The Plaintiffs Bar: Keller Rohrback's Gretchen Freeman Cappio

By Andrea Keckley

By the time Volkswagen was exposed for touting the low emissions of cars that secretly released nitrogen oxide pollutants up to 40 times the legal limit in the U.S., Keller Rohrback LLP's Gretchen Freeman Cappio knew she wasn't interested in defending corporate giants.

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