The Second Circuit has affirmed the dismissal of a putative class action alleging price fixing among title insurers. The plaintiffs alleged that the insurers manipulated the states-rate setting process to include agency commissions in their insurance rates. Relying on the filed rate doctrine, the Second Circuit held that the state regulators were sufficiently active to […]
Category Archives: US Federal Courts
Urethane Class Action Suits Can Move Forward
February 8, 2010 – 6:40 pm
In Carpenter Co. et al. v. BASF SE et al.; and Woodbridge Foam Corp. et al. v. BASF SE et al., Kansas District Court Judge John W. Lungstrum has allowed chemical companies that opted out of a class certification in a larger class action to proceed with their own two putative class actions accusing BASF […]
Court Rejects Attempt to Dismiss Novir Antitrust Suit
February 8, 2010 – 5:51 pm
Update September 2010: The Ninth Circuit has denied Abbott’s petition for writ of mandamus seeking the dismissal of the antitrust claims against it. In Rite Aid Corp. et al. v. Abbott Laboratories; and Safeway Inc. et al. v. Abbott Laboratories, Northern California District Judge Claudia Wilken denied Abbott’s omnibus motion to dismiss plaintiffs’ claims based […]
Urethane MDL Plaintiffs Order to Produce Data
February 2, 2010 – 11:42 am
District of Kansas Magistrate Judge James O’Hara ordered the plaintiffs in the urethane multi-district litigation to produce data about their sales that had been requested by the defendants. The judge agreed with defendants that the information was necessary to allow the defendants to respond to the conspiracy allegations by showing that the plaintiffs own information […]
Second Circuit Addresses Twombly Standard in Reviving Digital Music Conspiracy Suit
February 2, 2010 – 11:15 am
The Second Circuit reversed a district court’s dismissal of a case alleging that major record companies had conspired to increase the price of digital music distributed on CDs and over the Internet. The trial court had found the allegations of conspiracy insufficient under the Twombly standard. The Second Circuit reversed, explaining that “[t]he present complain […]
DVD Application Antitrust Suit Dismissed for Lack of Injury
January 14, 2010 – 10:01 am
In RealNetworks Inc. et al. v. DVD Copy Control Association Inc. et al., Northern District of California Judge Marilyn Hall Patel tossed RealNetworks Inc.’s claims that several movie studios ran afoul of U.S. antitrust law by conspiring to block the company’s DVD-copying application in favor of their own product. The judge found that RealNetworks lacked […]
Cable Monopoly Class Recertified
January 11, 2010 – 2:31 pm
In Behrend et al. v. Comcast Corp., Eastern District of Pennsylvania Judge John R. Padova has handed down a win to cable TV customers accusing Comcast Corp. of illegally establishing a monopoly in the Philadelphia area, recertifying a class after Comcast invoked a 2008 appeals court ruling in In re Hydrogen Peroxide Litigation to get […]
Abbott Settles Tricor Action Filed by States
January 9, 2010 – 7:28 pm
Update January 2010: Abbott has agreed to settle Tricor related claims filed by 22 states and the District of Columbia in the District of Delaware for $22.5 million. Update April 2009: The settlement amount has increased to $250 million, and a number of cases filed by various states and the District of Columbia based on […]
Antitrust Claims Dismissed in Hospital Services Case
January 7, 2010 – 12:46 pm
In Little Rock Cardiology Clinic et al. v. Baptist Health et al., Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a victory for Arkansas hospital network Baptist Health and Blue Cross health insurance affiliate, in an antitrust dispute pitting physician-owned facilities against major insurers and hospital owners. The Appeals Court upheld lower court’s dismissal of the […]