Update: The Third Circuit has refused to stay its ruling pending Supreme Court review. The defendant sought the stay in hopes of restraining the FTC and private plaintiffs from using the ruling to justify attacks on other drug patent settlements. In In re: K-Dur Antitrust Litigation, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit […]
Category Archives: Federal Trade Commission
Third Circuit and EU: Pay-for-Delay Generic Drug Settlement Can Violate Antitrust Law
August 7, 2012 – 4:20 pm
Eleventh Circuit Upheld Unwinding of a $78 Million Merger of Battery Separator Competitors
July 18, 2012 – 2:49 pm
In Polypore International Inc. v. Federal Trade Commission, the Eleventh Circuit upheld the FTC’s ruling, requiring Polypore International Inc. to divest of assets gained in its $76 million acquisition of Microporous Products LP. In 2008, The FTC filed a complaint to block Polypore’s $76 million purchase of Microporous because the deal substantially reduced competition in […]
FTC Calls for Ban on Injunctions to Enforce Standard-Essential Patents
July 2, 2012 – 4:32 pm
In two matters pending before the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), Matter of Certain Wireless Devices, Portable Music and Data Processing Devices, Computers and Components Thereof and In re: Certain Gaming and Entertainment Consoles, Related Software and Components Thereof, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and a group of major technology companies have joined forces seeking […]
First Circuit Revives U-Haul Price-Fixing Suit
May 16, 2012 – 12:02 pm
In Liu et al. v. Amerco et al., First Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the dismissal of a putative class action brought against U-Haul International, Inc., alleging that it invited its rival, Avis Budget Group, Inc., to collude on truck rental prices. In her suit, plaintiff claimed that U-Haul’s unfair and deceptive practices caused her […]
FTC Pay-for-Delay Drug Patent Challenge Fails
May 1, 2012 – 4:53 pm
In FTC v. Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc. et al., the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of the FTC’s complaint alleging that Solvay Pharmaceuticals Inc. and manufacturers of generics versions of Androgel violated the antitrust laws by settling patent claims through an arrangement in which the branded drug company paid the generics to keep […]
Court Grants FTC’s Preliminary Injunction Request, Temporarily Blocking Hospital Merger
April 22, 2012 – 2:59 pm
In Federal Trade Commission v. OSF Healthcare Systems et al., Northern District of Illinois Judge Frederick J. Kapala, granted the Federal Trade Commission’s move for a preliminary injunction, temporarily blocking a proposed merger of two Illinois hospitals. The FTC filed suit to challenge a proposed merger between OSF Healthcare System and Rockford Health System, claiming […]
FTC Sues to Halt OmniCare’s Bid to Acquire Pharmerica, Citing Effects on Medicare Part D Drug Plan
March 2, 2012 – 3:47 pm
The Federal Trade Commission filed an administrative complaint seeking to block Omnicare Inc.’s proposed $440.8 million acquisition of PharMerica Corp. The FTC alleged that Omnicare would control over half of the U.S. market for pharmacy services at nursing homes and other long-term facilities where patients receive prescription drugs from sponsors of the government’s Medicare Part […]
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. […]
FTC Reports 60% Increase in Pay-for-Delay Generic Drug Deals
June 1, 2011 – 7:53 am
Since the courts began permitting branded drug companies to pay generic companies not to enter the market with a generic version of a popular drug, the number of pay-for-delay settlements has increased. That process accelerated in 2010 with the number increasing to 31 deals up from 19 the previous year. The FTC has argued that […]