Showing archive for: “Sherman Antitrust Act”
The D.C. Circuit Re-Disappoints in Whole Foods: An Analysis of the Amended Opinions
Being a “glass is half-full” type of guy, I figured there was no way the D.C. Circuit’s decision on Whole Foods’ petition for rehearing en banc could turn out poorly: Either the court would grant the motion and correct the panel’s mistakes, or the court would deny the motion, setting up an attractive opportunity for ... The D.C. Circuit Re-Disappoints in Whole Foods: An Analysis of the Amended Opinions
Should the Supreme Court Grant Cert in Rambus?
As noted, the FTC has exercised its right under 15 USC 56(a)(3) to petition for a writ of certiorari to review the judgment of the D.C. Circuit in its FTC v. Rambus. The FTC press release is here. The petition is here. The questions presented, as framed by the Commission are: 1. Whether deceptive conduct ... Should the Supreme Court Grant Cert in Rambus?
FTC Seeks Cert in Rambus
The press release is here. The petition is here. The questions presented, as framed by the Commission are: 1. Whether deceptive conduct that significantly contributes to a defendant’s acquisition of monopoly power violates Section 2 of the Sherman Act. 2. Whether deceptive conduct that distorts the competitive process in a market, with the effect of ... FTC Seeks Cert in Rambus
Speaking of Resale Price Maintenance …
It looks like the FTC is interested in doing more than just investigating RPM (see Thom’s excellent post), as the agency just announced a series of public workshops on the question of how best to distinguish pro-competitive uses of RPM from those that raise competitive concerns. From the announcement: The FTC is requesting public comment ... Speaking of Resale Price Maintenance …
Reverse Payments Ripe for Cert?
The Federal Circuit came down on the side of rule of reason analysis, and no liability, in a reverse payment case in Cipro (HT: Antitrust Review and Patently-O): Since there was no basis for the district court to confidently predict that the Agreements at issue here would be found to be unlawful under a rule ... Reverse Payments Ripe for Cert?
GCP on the Section 2 Report Schism
Global Competition Policy has a trio of interesting articles on the DOJ Section 2 Report, and FTC response, which I’ve blogged about here and here from Tim Brennan, William Kolasky and Mark Popofsky. The abstract from Popofsky’s article gives a sense of the scope and importance of the issues here: The U.S. Department of Justice ... GCP on the Section 2 Report Schism
What is the Worst Antitrust Decision That is Good Law?
There’s been a bit of discussion about the “most destructive” decision that is good law around the blogs, e.g. here and here, in response to John McCain’s criticism of Boumedine calling it “one of the worst decisions in the history of this country.” The line of discussion led me to think about the titular question. ... What is the Worst Antitrust Decision That is Good Law?
Cert Granted in Linkline
The Supreme Court has granted cert in Pacific Bell Telephone Co., dba AT&T California v. linkLine Communications in order to address the question of whether a Section 2 “price squeeze” claim is viable under the Sherman Act if the defendant has no duty to deal. (HT: Scotusblog, which also has all of the relevant links). ... Cert Granted in Linkline
Big Antitrust News: Rambus Overturned
The D.C. Circuit’s opinion is available here. Here is one of the key passages explaining the D.C. Circuit’s logic: To the extent that the ruling (which simply reversed a grant of dismissal) rested on the argument that deceit lured the SSO away from non-proprietary technology, see id., it cannot help the Commission in view of ... Big Antitrust News: Rambus Overturned
"Leegin is a triumph of pragmatism"
That is what Judge Posner has to say about Leegin in his new book, How Judges Think. I’m only a few chapters in, but so far, its a fascinating read. I’ll probably blog some more about parts of the book later. In particular, I’ve been thinking recently about how the complexity of substantive antitrust analysis ... "Leegin is a triumph of pragmatism"
All We Are Saying Is Give PeaceHealth a Chance.
Josh had a characteristically thoughtful post last week on safe harbors for loyalty and bundled discounts. I didn’t comment on the post, with which I generally agree, because I was busy writing an amicus brief (also signed by Dan Crane, Richard Epstein, Tom Morgan, and Danny Sokol) in an attempt to preserve a different safe ... All We Are Saying Is Give PeaceHealth a Chance.
Barnett on the the Supreme Court, Convergence, and Enforcement Levels
Tom Barnett (DOJ Antitrust AG) gave a speech February 29th to the Federalist Society where he touched upon a number of interesting issues we’ve discussed from time to time here at TOTM. Some highlights: Barnett on recent Supreme Court activity. “I submit that the principal reason for the abundance of supermajority decisions is an analytical ... Barnett on the the Supreme Court, Convergence, and Enforcement Levels
