In Aetna Inc. v. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Eastern Distict of Michigan Judge Denise Page Hood struck down Blue Cross’ motion to dismiss Aetna’s complaint alleging that Blue Cross Blue Shield entered antitcompetitive agreements prohibiting about half of the state’s 131 hospitals from offering more favorable terms to competing insurers. As a result, […]
Author Archives: Steve Semeraro
Court Denies Blue Cross’ Motion to Compel Disclosure of Competitor and Consumer Interviews
July 2, 2012 – 4:46 pm
In United States v. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Eastern District of Michigan Judge Mona K. Majzoub denied a motion to compel, filed by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, seeking information the government collected in interviews with competitors and customers gathered while investing the case. In its suit, the government accuses Blue Cross […]
Second Circuit Affirms that Blackberry’s Backing out of Joint Production Deal Not Anticompetitive
July 2, 2012 – 4:45 pm
In Eatoni Ergonomics Inc. v. Research in Motion Corp. et al, the Second Circuit affirmed the trial court’s decision that BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd. (RIM) did not violate the antitrust laws when it backed out of a joint product development deal with Eastoni Ergonomics. In 2004, Eatoni accused RIM’s BlackBerry devices of infringing […]
Stay Lifted in Multidistrict Automotive Lighting Case
July 2, 2012 – 4:44 pm
In In re: Aftermarket Automotive Lighting Products Antitrust Litigation, Central District of California Judge George H. Wu lifted a stay on multidistrict litigation against automotive lighting manufacturer Eagle Eyes Traffic Industrial Co. Ltd. Although a parallel criminal case is on-going, Judge Wu concluded that the plaintiffs would suffer from additional delay. In 2008, direct purchasers […]
Direct Purchaser Class Certified in Railroad Fuel Surcharge Case
July 2, 2012 – 4:43 pm
In In re: Rail Freight Fuel Surcharge Antitrust Litigation, multi-district litigation, District of Columbia Paul L. Friedman certified a class of direct purchasers who are alleging that several railroad companies fixed shipping prices through an arbitrary fuel surcharge. The class was defined as anyone who purchased “rate-unregulated rail freight transport services” directly from at least […]
U.S. Supreme Court Requires Jury Findings on Facts Supporting Criminal Fines
July 2, 2012 – 4:41 pm
In Southern Union Co. v. U.S., the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed that any fact used to increase a maximum penalty must be proven to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt. That core principal, the court held, applies to criminal fines as well as jail sentences. Until recently, it was assumed that the Department of Justice, […]
US Supreme Court Grants Cert. to Resolve State Action and Class Action Disputes
July 2, 2012 – 4:40 pm
In the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC’s) prosecution of the Phoebe Putney Health System Inc. merger, the U.S. Supreme Court will clarify the degree of specificity that state lawmakers must use in adopting an anticompetitive state regulation in order to secure an exemption from the federal antitrust laws. The Eleventh Circuit upheld Phoebe Putney’s $195 million […]
Microsoft Loses Bid to Overturn EU Fine
July 2, 2012 – 4:38 pm
The European Commission fined Microsoft a $1.1 billion dollars for abusing its dominant position in the operating system market. Microsoft challenged the fine, but the EU General Court upheld it, requiring the software giant to license on reasonable terms interoperability data needed by firms writing programs that would be compatible with Windows. The decision bolsters […]
En banc Seventh Circuit Revives Potash Case, Interpreting FTAIA as Non-Jurisdictional
July 2, 2012 – 4:37 pm
In Minn-Chem Inc. et al. v. Agrium Inc. et al., the Seventh Circuit reversed a panel decision dismissing a suit against potash producers allegedly involved in a cartel. The en banc panel found that, under the Foreign Trade Antitrust Improvements Act (FTAIA), there was a sufficient connection between the alleged plot involving foreign producers and […]
Arbitration Rejected in Private E-books Case
July 2, 2012 – 4:34 pm
In In re: Electronic Books Antitrust Litigation, multi-district litigation, Southern District of New York Judge Denise Cote rejected publisher Penguin Group’s motion to compel arbitration for plaintiffs who purchased e-books from Amazon or Barnes & Noble, both of which contain arbitration clauses in their purchase agreements. The complaint accuses Penguin and other publishers of fixing […]