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Competition
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August 27, 2024
Va. Ad Tech Judge Warns Google Over Chat Deletion
Google's defense of its advertising technology could get a little harder after a Virginia federal judge on Tuesday kept the door open to assuming that deleted internal chats hid evidence that would support U.S. Department of Justice monopolization claims bound for a bench trial next month.
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August 26, 2024
Albertsons Paints Picture Of Dire Future Without Kroger Deal
Albertsons told an Oregon federal judge Monday that if the Federal Trade Commission is able to block a proposed merger with Kroger, it could lead to layoffs and shuttered stores, because a go-it-alone Albertsons doesn't have the wholesale buying power to compete with Walmart and Costco on prices.
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August 26, 2024
Banks' $20M Platinum Traders Antitrust Deal Gets Initial OK
A New York federal judge preliminarily approved Saturday a $20 million deal to resolve a nearly decade-old putative class action alleging Goldman Sachs, German industrial company BASF and two other banks fixed platinum and palladium prices.
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August 26, 2024
Care.com To Pay $8.5M To Settle FTC's Deception Claims
Caregiver job website Care.com has agreed to shell out $8.5 million in refunds to put to rest allegations it misled caregivers about wages and job availability and also made it difficult for families to cancel paid memberships, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission announced Monday.
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August 26, 2024
Rival Can't Avoid Drugmaker's False Ad Claim Over Pain Med
A Texas federal magistrate on Monday advised against dismissing Pacira Biosciences Inc.'s suit against a rival, finding that Pacira had alleged enough facts to show QuVa Pharma Inc.'s advertising is deceptive in a suit over the former company's compounded drug for pain.
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August 26, 2024
Former Google Execs Fight Ad Tech Trial Subpoenas
Former Google vice presidents and other company managers have filed a series of motions asking a Virginia federal judge to block U.S. Department of Justice subpoenas trying to force their testimony at next month's advertising technology monopolization trial, arguing their live participation is unneeded and improperly demanded.
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August 26, 2024
Motorola Says Hytera Owes $58M For Radio Royalty Contempt
Motorola Solutions told an Illinois federal judge Monday that Chinese rival Hytera Communications owes more than $58 million in royalties for a mobile radio it purportedly redesigned after a jury found it misappropriated trade secrets, asserting the radio's retooled source code is still improperly based on the same protected architecture.
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August 26, 2024
Hikma Urges Full Fed. Circ. To End Vascepa Skinny-Label Suit
Hikma Pharmaceuticals has asked the full Federal Circuit to intervene after a panel determined it must face infringement litigation over its generic version of Amarin Pharma Inc.'s blockbuster cardiovascular drug Vascepa.
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August 26, 2024
Gov't Looks To Limit Arguments In Rail Merger Appeal
The federal government urged the D.C. Circuit not to let a coalition of Illinois towns challenging the approval of Canadian Pacific's $31 billion merger with Kansas City Southern incorporate arguments made by Chicago's commuter rail system before the system dropped out of the case.
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August 26, 2024
Ex-FCC Republican Urges 6th Circ. To Tank Net Neutrality
A former Republican on the Federal Communications Commission who helped overturn net neutrality rules when the agency leadership was in GOP hands has pressed the Sixth Circuit to snuff out the Democratic FCC's effort to revive the policy.
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August 26, 2024
Connecticut And NY AGs Reach Terms For Hospital Merger
Two major hospital systems in New York and Connecticut have reached an agreement with their states' attorneys general to resolve an antitrust investigation spurred by the planned merger of Northwell Health and Nuvance Health, bringing the deal first announced in February closer to fruition.
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August 26, 2024
Feds Want 1 Year In Prison For Co. Owner In Bid-Rigging Case
On Friday, federal prosecutors asked a Georgia federal judge to sentence a man who pled guilty to participating in a coastal Georgia concrete bid-rigging and price-fixing scheme to one year and a day in prison.
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August 26, 2024
5th Circ. Holds Off On Gulf Fishery Council Rule Challenge
The Fifth Circuit on Friday ordered a Mississippi federal judge to decide key issues that went unaddressed in his ruling upholding a fishing limit in the Gulf of Mexico, saying that new case law must be applied before it handles the appeal.
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August 26, 2024
Shareholder Attys Get $11M For Taro Price-Fixing Deal
Bernstein Liebhard LLP will receive approximately $11 million for securing a $36 million settlement in a shareholder suit against Taro Pharmaceutical Industries, which claims Taro lied about alleged price-fixing that led to a U.S. Department of Justice antitrust investigation and subsequent stock price drop.
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August 26, 2024
FTC Mulls Proposal To Alter Puerto Rican Pharmacy Deal
The Federal Trade Commission is considering a plan to allow Puerto Rico's largest independent pharmacy cooperative to resume collective negotiations with payors, reexamining a 2012 settlement agreement that the cooperative says is now unnecessary because of changes in the commonwealth's law and pharmacy market.
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August 23, 2024
Maxell Urges Trade Commission To Bar TCL Smart TV Imports
Maxell Ltd. urged the U.S. International Trade Commission to permanently bar TCL from importing certain smart televisions that Maxell claims infringe several of its patents, saying TCL continues to import allegedly infringing televisions despite being long aware of Maxell's patent portfolio.
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August 23, 2024
TriZetto Says Infosys Swiped Healthcare Software Secrets
Cognizant TriZetto Software Group Inc. on Friday lodged trade secret misappropriation and breach of contract claims against competitor Infosys Ltd., alleging that Infosys improperly used information about TriZetto's "closely guarded, proprietary software offerings" to develop its own competing products and services.
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August 23, 2024
Caterpillar Can't Nix $12.9M Jury Loss In Wirtgen IP Row
A Delaware judge has declined to overturn a $12.9 million verdict that Caterpillar was ordered to pay machinery manufacturer Wirtgen for infringing five road-milling machine patents, rejecting Caterpillar's equitable defenses that included the patents are unenforceable because of an unreasonable delay in the patent application process.
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August 23, 2024
Ark. County Wants Out Of Cherokee Casino Licensing Dispute
An Arkansas county quorum court and its presiding judicial officer are asking a federal district court to be dismissed from a challenge by a Mississippi casino that looks to void a gaming license issued to two Cherokee Nation entities, arguing that the gaming operator has failed to state a claim.
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August 23, 2024
PayPal Ducks Antitrust Suit Over Merchant Rules
A California federal judge on Friday granted PayPal's motion to dismiss a proposed class action alleging the financial tech giant illegally boosts online retail prices by enforcing restrictive merchant agreements, saying the plaintiffs have failed to adequately plead that their injury "flows" from the alleged misconduct.
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August 23, 2024
FTC Notches Win In Amazon Prime Document Battle
A Washington federal judge said Thursday that Amazon can't force the Federal Trade Commission to hand over internal documents in a case alleging customers were duped into signing up for Prime services, saying the materials were not relevant to the company's defenses.
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August 23, 2024
FTC Regroups After Noncompete Setbacks In Florida, Texas
A Florida federal judge on Friday suspended a deadline given to the Federal Trade Commission to respond to a lawsuit challenging a worker noncompete ban after the agency requested more time to discuss next steps following recent setbacks against the rule in Texas and the Sunshine State.
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August 23, 2024
Ill. Cheer Parents Can Join $82.5M Antitrust Varsity Brand Deal
A Tennessee federal judge on Friday allowed cheer parents from Illinois to participate in an $82.5 million antitrust class action settlement reached with academic apparel giant Varsity Brands, finding they could receive settlement benefits without delaying the process or increasing administrative costs.
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August 23, 2024
Drugmakers' 'Subjective Beliefs' Obscured In Antitrust Case
A Pennsylvania federal judge has denied a request from direct purchasers of pharmaceuticals to compel the leaders of Abbott Laboratories and other companies to express "subjective beliefs" about sham patent litigation they allegedly engaged in, dismissing the purchasers' fears that the companies would change their position on certain issues at the last minute during trial.
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August 23, 2024
Vaping Co. VPR Says Rival Ashh Infringing E-Cig Tech
Florida-based e-cigarette manufacturer VPR Brands has slapped a rival with a patent infringement lawsuit, telling a Michigan federal court that its competitor has been making and selling vapes that infringe its patented "electronic inhaler" and atomizer system.
Expert Analysis
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PE In The Crosshairs Of Public And Private Antitrust Enforcers
A series of decisions from a California federal court in the recently settled Packaged Seafood Products Antitrust Litigation, as well as heightened scrutiny from federal agencies, serve as a reminder that private equity firms may be exposed to liability for alleged anti-competitive conduct by their portfolio companies, say attorneys at Axinn.
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Series
Swimming Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Years of participation in swimming events, especially in the open water, have proven to be ideal preparation for appellate arguments in court — just as you must put your trust in the ocean when competing in a swim event, you must do the same with the judicial process, says John Kulewicz at Vorys.
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FTC Noncompete Rule May Still Face Historical Hurdles
The Federal Trade Commission's final rule banning noncompetes might face challenges that could have been avoided with more cautious consideration of the commission's long history of failed lawsuits that went beyond the agency's statutory authority, as well as the mountain of judicial precedent justifying noncompete agreements in employment contracts, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.
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Manufacturers Should Pay Attention To 'Right-To-Repair' Laws
Oregon’s recently passed "right-to-repair" statute highlights that the R2R movement is not going away, and that manufacturers of all kinds need to be paying attention to the evolving list of R2R statutes in various states and consider participating in the process, says Courtney Sarnow at Culhane.
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New Federal Bill Would Drastically Alter Privacy Landscape
While the recently introduced American Privacy Rights Act would eliminate the burdensome patchwork of state regulations, the proposed federal privacy law would also significantly expand compliance obligations and liability exposure for companies, especially those that rely on artificial intelligence or biometric technologies, says David Oberly at Baker Donelson.
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Opinion
CFPB Could, And Should, Revise Open Banking Rulemaking
In light of continued global developments in open banking, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau should evaluate whether it actually should use its proposed rule on Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Act to amplify personal financial data rights in the U.S., says Brian Fritzsche at the Consumer Bankers Association.
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How Cos. Can Protect IP In Light Of FTC Noncompete Rule
While several groups are challenging the Federal Trade Commission’s recently approved rule banning noncompetition agreements, employers should begin planning other ways to protect their valuable trade secrets, confidential information and other intellectual property, says Thomas Duston at Marshall Gerstein.
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PE-Healthcare Mergers Should Prepare For Challenges
State and federal regulators are increasingly imposing new requirements on healthcare transactions involving private equity partners, with mergers that would have drawn little scrutiny a few years ago now requiring a multijurisdictional risk analysis during the deal formation process, say attorneys at Stinson.
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Setting Goals For Kicking Corruption Off FIFA World Cup Field
The unprecedented tri-country nature of the 2026 men's World Cup will add to the complexity of an already complicated event, but best practices can help businesses stay on the right side of anti-corruption rules during this historic competition, say Sandra Moser and Emily Ahdieh at Morgan Lewis.
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Don't Use The Same Template For Every Client Alert
As the old marketing adage goes, consistency is key, but law firm style guides need consistency that contemplates variety when it comes to client alert formats, allowing attorneys to tailor alerts to best fit the audience and subject matter, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.
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Online Portal Helps Fortify Feds' Unfair Health Practices Fight
The Federal Trade Commission, U.S. Justice Department and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently launched an online portal where the public can report potentially unfair healthcare practices, effectively maximizing enforcers' abilities to police anti-competitive actions that can drive up healthcare costs and chill innovation, say attorneys at Seyfarth.
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Series
Walking With My Dog Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Thanks to my dog Birdie, I've learned that carving out an activity different from the practice of law — like daily outdoor walks that allow you to interact with new people — can contribute to professional success by boosting creativity and mental acuity, as well as expanding your social network, says Sarah Petrie at the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office.
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Birkin Bag Case Carries Competition Lessons For Retailers
A recently proposed antitrust class action alleging that Hermès violated federal and California law when selling its iconic Birkin and Kelly handbags highlights some issues that other brands and retailers should consider, particularly given a prevailing landscape that seems to prioritize antitrust scrutiny, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Follow The Iron Rule Of Trial Logic
Many diligent and eager attorneys include every good fact, point and rule in their trial narratives — spurred by the gnawing fear they’ll be second-guessed for leaving something out — but this approach ignores a fundamental principle of successful trial lawyering, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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The Art Of Asking: Leveraging Your Contacts For Referrals
Though attorneys may hesitate to ask for referral recommendations to generate new business, research shows that people want to help others they know, like and trust, so consider who in your network you should approach and how to make the ask, says Rebecca Hnatowski at Edwards Advisory.