Both the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division and the European Commission have approved Google Inc.’s $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. after intense scrutiny of how Google’s acquisition of Motorola’s intellectual property would give its Android operating system leverage in the wireless market. The DOJ said the licensing of vital “standard essential” […]
Author Archives: Steve Semeraro
DOJ and EC Approve Google Acquisition of Motorola, Other Technology Patent Transactions
March 2, 2012 – 3:45 pm
Motion to Dismiss Denied in Credit Card Arbitration Conspiracy Case
March 2, 2012 – 3:43 pm
Southern District of New York federal judge U.S. District Judge Willam H. Pauley denied Discover Bank and Citigroup Inc.’s motion to dismiss claims in multidistrict litigation claiming that credit card issuers conspired to insert anti-competitive arbitration clauses in their customer agreements. Citigroup and Discover are the only remaining defendants in a case alleging that the […]
Pleading Standards Do Not Require Identification of Lost Profits or Injured Competitors, Ohio Court Rules
March 2, 2012 – 3:42 pm
Northern District of Ohio federal judge John Adams denied Checkpoint Systems Inc. motion to dismiss Universal Surveillance Systems’ complaint because the allegations adequately alleged that the defendant’s anti-competitive behavior drove up prices for security tags. Checkpoint, a leading supplier of security labels, argued that the Twombly pleading standards require plaintiffs to specifically identify the lost […]
Court Lifts Motorola’s Infringement Injunction Against Apple’s iPad and iPhone Sales in Germany
March 2, 2012 – 3:41 pm
A temporary injunction against the sale of iPhones and iPads have been lifted on the ground that Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc.’s continued insistence on the ban could run afoul of antitrust law. In December 2011, Motorola successful convinced a German court to enjoin Apple’s sales of the products on the ground that they infringed a […]
Class Action Against Pharmacy Chain Dismissed
March 2, 2012 – 3:40 pm
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed the dismissal of a proposed class action against several pharmacy chains — including CVS Caremark Corp., Rite Aid Corp. and Walgreen Co. — over the companies’ alleged participation in a scheme to artificially inflate drug prices. The court affirmed California U.S. District Judge Susan Illston ruling that […]
FTC Challenges Lundbeck Drug Acquisition in Eighth Circuit
August 31, 2011 – 10:27 am
Update August 2011: The Eighth Circuit affirmed, holding that the FTC failed to show that the lower court’s findings of fact were clearly erroneous. In particular, the court held that the FTC failed to show that the hospitals actually paying for the drugs in question directly influenced the doctors’ choice of which drug to prescribe. […]
Catheter Class Action Dismissal Affirmed on Appeal
August 5, 2011 – 11:49 am
Update August 2011: The Eighth Circuit has denied rehearing en banc. Update June 2011: In a divided decision, the Eighth Circuit on rehearing affirmed its decision upholding summary judgment for CR Bard on the ground that the plaintiff failed to allege sufficiently a relevant sub-market. Update October 2010: The Eighth Circuit panel has agreed to […]
DOJ Antitrust Concerns Alter Novell Patent Deal
July 20, 2011 – 2:30 pm
In response to DOJ, Antitrust Division, concerns, a Microsoft-led joint venture has agreed to change its deal to purchase over 800 patents from Novell as part of its sale to Attachmate. Under the revised sale agreement, Microsoft and EMC will not be allowed to hold certain patents, and all of the patents will be covered […]