Northern District of California Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton refused to certify a proposed of online advertisers in In re: Facebook Inc. PPC Advertising Litigation. The court held that the proposed class representatives did not show that they were harmed by the alleged violations. The complaint alleged that Facebook charged advertisers for cost-per-click, or CPC, advertising, […]
Category Archives: State Antitrust Law
E-book Publishing Antitrust Case Filed
May 1, 2012 – 4:41 pm
The United States Department of Justice, Antitrust Division, and the European Commission have launched major antitrust initiatives against the e-book publishing industry and Apple. Both enforcers are attacking the publishers’ decisions to switch from a traditional resale model in which book sellers paid wholesale prices and set their own resale prices to an agency model […]
Court Allows Attempted Monopolization Claim Against Cessna to Proceed
April 30, 2012 – 11:53 am
In WM Aviation LLC et al. v. Cessna Aircraft Co., Middle District of Florida Judge G. Kendall Sharp, dismissed a large portion of a suit against Cessna Aircraft Co. over a 2008 runway plane crash. WM Aviation LLC and Tricor International Corp. accused Cessna of performing faulty maintenance on the jet operated by WM Aviation […]
Jury Finds No Evidence of Antitrust Violations in Emergency Spine Surgery Suit
April 23, 2012 – 1:46 pm
In Alan Moelleken v. Cottage Hospital et al., a California Superior Court jury returned a verdict for the defendants in a suit, filed by orthopedic surgeon Alan Moelleken against Santa Barbara’s Cottage Health System and four doctors, alleging unfair business practices and violations of California’s Cartwright Act. In his suit, plaintiff claimed that in order […]
Non-Compete Agreement That Restricts Competitor’s Entry Into the Market Violates Antitrust Laws
March 23, 2012 – 10:11 am
In C-E Mineral Inc. v. Carbo Ceramic Inc., Northern District ofGeorgia Judge J. Owen Forrester granted C-E Mineral Inc.’s motion for a preliminary injunction barring Carbo Ceramics Inc. from enforcing an eight-year-old non-compete provision in a supply contract to restrict C-E’s sales of rival ceramic proppants. The injunction is part of a C-E’s declaratory suit […]
Mainframe Resale Suit Tossed by the Court For Lack of Showing of Harm to the Mainframe Market
March 20, 2012 – 8:42 pm
In QGSI Inc. v. IBM Global Financing et al., Southern District of Florida Judge Kenneth L. Ryskamp, granted a motion to dismiss a case filed by a reseller of computer mainframes. QSGI Inc. sued IBM Corp. alleging that IBM violated Florida’s Antitrust and Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Acts by engaging in monopolistic business practices […]
Class Certification Denied In Pineapple Sham Patent Suit
March 20, 2012 – 3:50 pm
In Conroy v. Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. et al., California First District Court of Appeal upheld the denial of class certification in a case filed by direct and indirect purchasers, accusing Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. of securing a patent for a variety of pineapple that it knew to be unpatentable and subsequently using […]
Multimedia Messaging Antitrust Suit Dismissed for Lack of Standing
March 19, 2012 – 3:13 pm
In Bruce Max Davis et al. v. AT&T Wireless Services, Inc. et al., California federal judge Dean D. Pregerson, tossed a putative antitrust conspiracy class action under the Sherman Act and California Cartwright Act. The complaint alleged price-fixing and unfair competition, and was filed by multimedia content owners and producers against AT&T Mobility LLC, Verizon […]
California Auto Insurer Parts Conspiracy Case to Move Forward
May 31, 2011 – 1:53 pm
Northern District of California Judge James Ware refused to dismiss a putative class action alleging that California auto insurers violated the Cartwright Act, California’s antitrust statute, by conspiring to require auto repair shops to use inferior replacement parts. The case had been twice dismissed and then revived by the 9th Circuit on standing and insurance […]
Montana State Antitrust Dispute Resolved on Summary Judgment
January 22, 2011 – 6:26 pm
District of Montana Judge Richard F. Cebull dismissed state antitrust claims filed by Montana Camo brought under the state’s Unfair Trade Practices Act, granting Cabela’s motion for summary judgment. The plaintiff supplied camouflage clothing and licensed clothing designs to Cabela’s until disagreements arose over pricing. Montana Camo claims that Cabela’s violated state antitrust law by (1) […]