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The Antitrust Attorney Blog

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Waiting for Change—Antitrust in Distribution in Early 2021

Author:  Steven J. Cernak Recently, I was researching antitrust developments in 2020 to update my Antitrust in Distribution and Franchising book.  While there were several developments last year, what struck me was the large number of potentially drastic changes to antitrust distribution law that started to play out in 2020…

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Congress Creates New Protections for Antitrust Whistleblowers

Author: Jon Cieslak Over a year after it was first passed by the Senate, the Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act finally became law in December 2020. The new law protects employees who report criminal antitrust violations such as price fixing or bid rigging from retaliation. The Act states that an employer…

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What Happens if Congress Overrides the Classic Antitrust Platform Market Case of American Express?

Authors:  Kristen Harris and Steven J. Cernak As we covered earlier (see here and here), the recent U.S. House Judiciary Committee Majority Report on its Investigation into Digital Markets recommends that Congress override several classic antitrust cases. In particular, the Report recommends “clarifying that cases involving platforms do not require…

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Antitrust Injury and the Classic Antitrust Case of Brunswick Corp v. Pueblo Bowl-O-Mat

photo credit: ginnerobot via photopin cc Author: Jarod Bona Antitrust injury is one of the most commonly fought battles in antitrust litigation. It is also one of the least understood antitrust concepts. No matter what your antitrust theory, it is almost certain that you must satisfy antitrust-injury requirements to win…

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Five U.S. Antitrust Law Tips for Foreign Companies

Author: Jarod Bona Just because your company isn’t based in the United States doesn’t mean it can ignore US antitrust law. In this interconnected world, there is a good chance that if you produce something, the United States is a market that matters to your company. For that reason, I…

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Classic Antitrust Cases: Will Congress Override Brooke Group, Matsushita, and Weyerhaeuser—and Resurrect Utah Pie?

By:  Steven J. Cernak As we described in a prior post, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee Majority Report of its Investigation into Digital Markets included a number of recommendations that went beyond digital markets, including overriding several classic antitrust cases.  One of the Report’s recommendations is to make it easier…

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What Can Your Friendly Antitrust Lawyer Do for You?

Author: Jarod Bona Some lawyers focus on litigation. Other attorneys spend their time on transactions or mergers & acquisitions. Many lawyers offer some sort of legal counseling. Another group—often in Washington, DC or Brussels—spend their time close to the government, usually either administrative agencies or the legislature. And perhaps the…

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Do Bundled Discounts Violate the Antitrust Laws? LePage’s, PeaceHealth, and the Discount-Attribution Test

Author: Jarod Bona Let’s pretend that you sell three different types of protein powder: Whey Protein, Casein Protein, and Pea Protein. You sell them each for $10 per container. But for someone—like myself—that likes to include several types of protein in their morning smoothie, you offer a special deal of…

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A Federal Antitrust Investigation Can Cause an Antitrust Blizzard

Author: Jarod Bona I am from Minnesota, so I am quite familiar with blizzards. They may be interesting to watch through a window from a room warmed by a fireplace, but you don’t want to get caught in one. The same is true for an antitrust blizzard: They are interesting…

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SmileDirectClub, Dental Boards, and State-Action Immunity: DOJ Antitrust Division Argues a Court Wasn’t Tough Enough on a State Dental Board

Author: Luis Blanquez When someone new enters a market with a different or better idea or way of doing business, existing competitors must also innovate, lower their price, or otherwise improve their offerings to maintain their position in the market. That is why competition is good for consumers. But sometimes…