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Competition
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October 24, 2024
Heineken Faces €160M Claim After Dutch Market Abuse Ruling
Heineken was held jointly liable for its Greek subsidiary abusing its dominant position to hold back competitors by a Dutch court, paving the way for a rival brewery to press home its over €160 million ($173 million) antitrust claim against the beer giant.
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October 24, 2024
EU Court Upholds Annulment Of Intel's €1B Antitrust Fine
Computer chip giant Intel Corp. has beaten the European Commission's €1.06 billion ($1.14 billion) fine against it after the European Union's highest court ruled that a lower court could invalidate the EU administrative arm's conclusions, ending a long-running legal battle over the 2009 fine.
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October 24, 2024
MVP: Skadden's Steve Sunshine
Steve Sunshine, global head of antitrust at Skadden, led a team representing Activision Blizzard through its $69 billion acquisition by Microsoft and secured the dismissal of major antitrust claims for Apple, earning him a spot among the 2024 Law360 MVPs.
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October 24, 2024
UK Probes Sonoco's $3.9B Bid For Eviosys
The antitrust watchdog said Thursday that it is investigating U.S.-based Sonoco Products Co.'s proposed $3.9 billion acquisition of European food can-maker Eviosys from private equity shop KPS Capital Partners.
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October 24, 2024
UK Clears Acerinox's $800M Bid For Haynes International
The U.K. antitrust watchdog said Thursday that it has waved through the planned $798 million takeover by stainless steel manufacturer Acerinox of Haynes International, which makes alloys, during the initial phase of its probe.
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October 23, 2024
TriZetto Gets New Damages Trial After Ax Of $200M Awards
A New York federal judge Wednesday agreed to hold a new damages trial in Cognizant affiliate TriZetto's trade secret misappropriation and copyright infringement dispute with Syntel, a development that comes after the judge wiped out $200 million in damages awards in favor of TriZetto earlier this year.
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October 23, 2024
Co. Misleads Claimants About Visa Mastercard MDL, Attys Say
Class counsel for plaintiffs in long-running multidistrict litigation accusing Visa and Mastercard of charging improper merchant fees asked a New York federal judge to demand explanations from a third-party company over misleading statements it allegedly made regarding the claims-submission process for recovering settlement payments.
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October 23, 2024
NY AG Probes Capital One's Planned $35B Discover Merger
New York Attorney General Letitia James has joined federal regulators in investigating Capital One Financial Corp.'s proposed $35 billion acquisition of Discover Financial Services, according to a Wednesday subpoena petition alleging the deal might violate Empire State antitrust laws.
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October 23, 2024
DOJ Bolsters Defense In Pork Price-Fixing Case, Cos. Say
Hormel, Tyson, JBS and other pork producers told a Minnesota federal court that a Justice Department intervention into a private price-fixing litigation actually backs their defense, even though the government took no position on the merits of the case.
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October 23, 2024
Athletes Pause TV Revenue Suit Until NIL Deal's Fate Is Clear
A group of college athletes has agreed to stay its suit seeking a cut of NCAA television revenue in Colorado federal court, with a magistrate judge on Wednesday granting the two parties' request to pause the case while the landmark name, image and likeness settlement in a separate California case awaits approval.
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October 23, 2024
Telecom Group Sues To Cancel FTC's 'Click To Cancel' Rule
A major cable and internet industry group and others sued the Federal Trade Commission Wednesday over its new "click to cancel" rule, asking the Fifth Circuit to vacate the regulation one week after it was adopted in a 3-2 commission vote.
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October 23, 2024
ECJ Won't Call Off Clawback Of Portugal's Tax Breaks
The European Court of Justice declined to overturn a European Commission decision that Portugal must claw back tax breaks provided in a free trade zone to companies with no local economic activity, as those breaks violated the bloc's state aid rules, according to a judgment issued Wednesday.
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October 23, 2024
High Court Won't Pause Google's Subpoena Of State Agency
The U.S. Supreme Court refused Wednesday to block Google's request for documents in a case accusing the tech giant of monopolizing key digital ad technology as a South Carolina agency challenges an order forcing it to comply with the subpoena.
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October 23, 2024
Securities Claim Cut From Fraud Suit Against Calif. Developer
A California federal judge trimmed a securities claim from a Sonoma resident's suit against a real estate company embroiled in a fraud scandal and recommended that the rest of the claims be brought in state court.
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October 23, 2024
Roche CEO Says Novo-Catalent Deal Should Be Blocked
The CEO of Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche injected himself into the controversy surrounding Novo Holdings' planned $16.5 billion acquisition of Catalent on Wednesday, stating that he thinks antitrust authorities should block the deal due to its anticompetitive implications.
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October 23, 2024
9th Circ. Backs Injury Firm's Win In Fight Over Google Ads
The Ninth Circuit has upheld an Arizona federal court's ruling in favor of a Tempe-based personal injury firm that was sued by another personal injury firm, Lerner & Rowe, over its purchases of Google advertising search terms, with the judges finding little "actual confusion" was caused by the advertising strategy.
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October 23, 2024
MVP: Weil's Michael Moiseyev
Michael Moiseyev of Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP has helped tech behemoth Microsoft navigate a gauntlet of regulators across different countries and knock out antitrust challenges to large transactions, including its buy of Activision Blizzard, earning him a spot as one of the 2024 Law360 Competition and Antitrust MVPs.
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October 23, 2024
UK Launches Formal Probe Into £3.3B Carlsberg/Britvic Deal
The Competition and Markets Authority said Wednesday it has launched a formal investigation into the proposed £3.3 billion ($4.3 billion) takeover by Danish brewer Carlsberg AS of U.K. soft drinks maker Britvic PLC, setting a Dec. 18 deadline for its phase-one decision.
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October 22, 2024
UFC Fighters Win Initial OK On $375M Wage Suppression Deal
A Nevada federal judge on Tuesday gave his blessing to a $375 million settlement resolving a group of former UFC fighters' claims that the organization for years underpaid match participants, the fighters' counsel confirmed.
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October 22, 2024
Big Banks Say Yearslong Libor Suit Still Lacks Evidence
Bank of America, Merrill Lynch and more than a dozen other large banks have urged a federal judge to dismiss the remaining claims in multidistrict litigation accusing them of manipulating Libor, arguing that the plaintiffs have failed to bring sufficient evidence in the 13 years since they filed suit over the once-critical benchmark interest rate.
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October 22, 2024
Texas Rebar Giant Accused Of Crushing Rivals As Trial Opens
Pacific Steel Group's counsel told a California federal jury during trial openings Tuesday that Texas rebar giant Commercial Metals Co. used anticompetitive tactics to "crush" competition and drive up rebar prices in the Golden State, while CMC's counsel said evidence will show PSG can only blame itself for its problems.
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October 22, 2024
Ex-Google GC Must Be Investigated By Calif. Bar, Groups Say
A trio of groups led by the American Economic Liberties Project on Tuesday pressed the State Bar of California to investigate former Google general counsel Kent Walker for "coaching" the company to "engage in widespread and illegal destruction of records relevant to multiple ongoing federal trials."
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October 22, 2024
Hagens Berman Says Vorys 'Opportunistically' Seeking Lead
Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP is fighting a bid by Vorys Sater Seymour and Pease LLP to take the lead in a proposed consolidated class action against gaming giant Valve Corp., saying that after they defeated Valve's arbitration provision Vorys sought to "opportunistically" seize the leadership role.
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October 22, 2024
IQVIA, Veeva Blast Summary Judgment Bids In Secrets Suit
Life sciences data giant IQVIA Inc. and competitor Veeva Systems Inc. slammed each other's summary judgment bids made public Tuesday in a trade secrets lawsuit in New Jersey federal court, with Veeva arguing that IQVIA's purported trade secrets are hardly confidential and IQVIA saying Veeva's assertions are "a last-ditch effort to avoid liability."
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October 22, 2024
Don't Let Cities Eat Into Broadband Revenue, Think Tank Says
Giving local governments free rein to start charging broadband providers new franchise fees based on their use of public rights of way would be a bad idea that would drive up consumer costs and hinder the growth of connectivity, a free market think tank has argued.
Expert Analysis
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What To Expect From Calif. Bill Regulating PE In Healthcare
A California bill currently awaiting Gov. Gavin Newsom's approval, intended to increase oversight over private equity and hedge fund investments in healthcare, is emblematic of recent increased scrutiny of investments in the space, and may affect transactions and operations in California in a number of ways, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.
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Why Now Is The Time For Law Firms To Hire Lateral Partners
Partner and associate mobility data from the second quarter of this year suggest that there's never been a better time in recent years for law firms to hire lateral candidates, particularly experienced partners — though this necessitates an understanding of potential red flags, say Julie Henson and Greg Hamman at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.
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Series
After Chevron: Courts Will Still Defer To Feds On Nat'l Security
Agencies with trade responsibilities may be less affected by Chevron’s demise because of the special deference courts have shown when hearing international trade cases involving national security, foreign policy or the president’s constitutional authority to direct such matters, say attorneys at Venable.
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A Look At The Economic Impact Of Drug Patent Differentiation
Given the Federal Trade Commission’s recent emphasis on unfair competition based on disputed patent listings, pharmaceutical market participants are likely to require nuanced characterizations of actual and but-for market competition when multiple patents differentiate multiple products, say economists at Competition Dynamics.
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Google And The Next Frontier Of Divestiture Antitrust Remedy
The possibility of a large-scale divestiture in the Google search case comes on the heels of recent requests of business breakups as remedies for anticompetitive conduct, and companies should prepare for the likelihood that courts may impose divestiture remedies in the event of a liability finding, say Lauren Weinstein and Nathaniel Rubin at MoloLamken.
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Considering Possible PR Risks Of Certain Legal Tactics
Disney and American Airlines recently abandoned certain litigation tactics in two lawsuits after fierce public backlash, illustrating why corporate counsel should consider the reputational implications of any legal strategy and partner with their communications teams to preempt public relations concerns, says Chris Gidez at G7 Reputation Advisory.
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What To Know About Insurance Coverage For Antitrust Risks
With all the regulatory activity surrounding antitrust and unfair competition claims, as highlighted by last month's D.C. federal court decision that Google is a monopolist, businesses must not only ensure compliance, but also understand their potential insurance coverage when such claims arise, says Micah Skidmore at Haynes Boone.
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Exploring Practical Employer Alternatives To Noncompetes
With the Federal Trade Commission likely to appeal a federal court’s recent rejection of its noncompete ban, and more states limiting the enforceability of these agreements, employers should consider back-to-basics methods for protecting their business interests and safeguarding sensitive information, says Brendan Horgan at FordHarrison.
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3 M&A Elements To Master In A Volatile Economy
The current M&A market requires a strategic approach to earnouts, past-due accounts payable and employee retention in order to mitigate risk and drive successful outcomes, says Robert Harig at Robbins DiMonte.
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It's No Longer Enough For Firms To Be Trusted Advisers
Amid fierce competition for business, the transactional “trusted adviser” paradigm from which most firms operate is no longer sufficient — they should instead aim to become trusted partners with their most valuable clients, says Stuart Maister at Strategic Narrative.
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Behind 3rd Circ. Ruling On College Athletes' FLSA Eligibility
The Third Circuit's decision that college athletes are not precluded from bringing a claim under the Fair Labor Standards Act raises key questions about the practical consequences of treating collegiate athletes as employees, such as Title IX equal pay claims and potential eligibility for all employment benefits, say attorneys at Debevoise.
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Complying With FTC's Final Rule On Sham Online Reviews
The Federal Trade Commission's final rule on deceptive acts and practices in online reviews and testimonials is effective Oct. 21, and some practice tips can help businesses avert noncompliance risks, say Airina Rodrigues and Jonathan Sandler at Brownstein Hyatt.
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Opinion
A Fuzzy Label With Bite: FTC Must Define Surveillance Pricing
The Federal Trade Commission recently issued orders to eight companies — including Mastercard, McKinsey and Chase — seeking information on "surveillance pricing," but the order doesn't explain the term or make the distinction between legal and illegal practices, leaving any company that uses personalized pricing in the dark, says Chris Wlach at Huge.
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Assessing Algorithmic Versus Generative AI Pricing Tools
A comparison of traditional algorithmic pricing models and those powered by generative artificial intelligence can help regulators and practitioners weigh the pros and cons of relying on large language models to price products or services, say Maxime Cohen at McGill University, and Tim Spittle and Jimmy Royer at Analysis Group.
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A Look At UK, EU And US Cartel Enforcement Trends
The European Union, U.K. and U.S. competition agencies' recently issued joint statement on competition risks in generative artificial intelligence demonstrates increased cross-border collaboration on cartel investigations, meaning companies facing investigations in one jurisdiction should anticipate related investigations in other jurisdictions, say lawyers at Latham & Watkins.