ABA Section of Antitrust Spring Meeting
The 59th Annual Section of Antitrust Spring Meeting is coming up March 30th to April 1. For those who have not yet had the opportunity to attend and will be in DC or can make it — its a great event and I highly recommend it. If you are a law student interested in attending ... ABA Section of Antitrust Spring Meeting
The NFL Lawyers Up
For a possible antitrust suit following from the players’ decertification: The National Football League geared up for its antitrust battle against players Saturday by hiring two prominent attorneys for its legal team. David Boies, who represented Al Gore in the Bush vs. Gore case following the 2000 election, and who last year won a $1.3 ... The NFL Lawyers Up
Dilbert on Opportunity Cost
From today’s Washington Post:
Comment to the Federal Reserve Board on Regulation II: Where’s the Competitive Impact Analysis?
I have submitted a comment to the Federal Reserve Board concerning Regulation II, along with the American Enterprise Institute’s Alex Brill, Christopher DeMuth, Alex J. Pollock, and Peter Wallison, as well as my George Mason colleague Todd Zywicki. Regulation II implements the interchange fee provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. The comment makes a rather straightforward ... Comment to the Federal Reserve Board on Regulation II: Where’s the Competitive Impact Analysis?
DOJ to Waxman: Violating Net Neutrality Isn’t Anticompetitive
Congressman Waxman shares that the news that the DOJ Antitrust Division told him that cable or phone companies violating net neutrality principles with exclusive or discriminatory deals are not violating the antitrust laws: Waxman said during a net neutrality hearing Wednesday that Justice officials informed his office that existing competition laws cannot be used to ... DOJ to Waxman: Violating Net Neutrality Isn’t Anticompetitive
Revisiting the Supreme Court’s “Pro-Business” Bias
Ed Whelan chimes in on the perennial debate with the most recent data: Those sneaky “corporatist” justices are at it again, cleverly disguising their biases by ruling in favor of employees and/or against corporations in two Supreme Court decisions issued today: 1. In Staub v. Proctor Hospital, the Court, reversing the Seventh Circuit, ruled unanimously ... Revisiting the Supreme Court’s “Pro-Business” Bias
0 for 2
The Supreme Court denied cert in both S&M Brands v. Caldwell and Wine Country Gift Baskets v. Steen. I had participated in drafting amicus briefs, along with my colleague Todd Zywicki, supporting certiorari in each. The briefs are available here and here. Maybe I’ll have better luck next year.
Gans on Apple and Antitrust
Joshua Gans has an interesting post examining potential antitrust issues involving Apple, an issue we’ve discussed here and here. Gans focuses in on the two most relevant issues: There are two aspects that might raise antitrust concern: (i) Apple’s exclusivity-like requirement that no external payment links be permitted in apps and (ii) Apple’s most-favored customer ... Gans on Apple and Antitrust
Some Links
EU raid on e-book publishers Ginsburg & Miles on the rise of empirical c0-authorship in the law Mike McCann updates on the Barry Bonds trial Federalism and online gambling David Henderson and Chris DeMuth remember economist Jack Calfee
Empirical Legal Scholarship, Empirical Legal Scholars, and the Quality of Legal Education: A Response to Professor Bainbridge
Professor Bainbridge isn’t fond of empirical legal scholarship; more significantly, he asserts that law professors trained to pursue it fundamentally undercut the purposes of legal academia. (His judgment on legal academics which moonlight as amateur statisticians remains to be seen.) Professor Bainbridge has for some time criticized empirical legal scholarship – but now he targets ... Empirical Legal Scholarship, Empirical Legal Scholars, and the Quality of Legal Education: A Response to Professor Bainbridge
EU Bans Insurer Price Discrimination Based on Gender
From the WSJ: The European Union’s highest court declared illegal the widespread practice of charging men and women different rates for insurance, roiling the industry and setting in motion an overhaul of how life, auto and health policies are written across Europe.Two Belgian men had challenged the higher life-insurance premiums charged to members of their ... EU Bans Insurer Price Discrimination Based on Gender
Apple, Antitrust, and the FTC
Antitrust investigators continue to see smoke rising around Apple and the App Store. From the WSJ: For starters, subscriptions must be sold through Apple’s App Store. For instance, a magazine that wants to publish its content on an iPad cannot include a link in an iPad app that would direct readers to buy subscriptions through ... Apple, Antitrust, and the FTC
