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Blog o’ Blogs April

By  |  August 15, 2017

Spring has arrived in the Northern Hemisphere, and like bears awaking from slumber, the region’s Antitrust regulators and practitioners have been getting busy. Massive mergers are now facing important crackdowns and previously ‘safe’ sectors start feeling the burn of a renewed round of scrutiny. Perhaps, an urge to clean house as new, never-before-seen issues in competition, consumer protection and the implications of technological innovation begin to take shape in the (surprisingly) near future.

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    Sharing economy firms are disrupting traditional industries across the globe. As Tom Goodwin once put it: “Uber, the world’s largest taxi company, owns no vehicles.
    Marcin Mieczko (Kluwer Competition)
    Tenth Circuit Clarifies Rule of Reason Analysis for Tying Claims
    Tying is a chameleon in antitrust law.  Courts can condemn tying arrangements as either per se violations or as unlawful under the rule of reason……
     J. Taylor Kirklin and Robert P. LoBue (Antitrust Update)
    Recent empirical research purports to show that common ownership by institutional investors harms competition even when all financial holdings are minority interests. This research has received a great deal of attention, leading to both calls for and actual changes in antitrust policy.
    Daniel P. O’Brien, Keith Waehrer(Antitrust Lawyer)
    Antitrust Not Always Available in Competitor Disputes in the Healthcare Sector
    The antitrust injury and antitrust standing defenses/doctrines are alive and well in healthcare.  A recent case, SCPH Legacy Corp. et al. v. Palmetto Health et al., shows that a competitor is not always the most legally appropriate plaintiff to bring an antitrust case, especially when the competitor’s alleged harm stems from increased competition.
    Nadezhda Nikonova and David Garcia (Antitrust Law Blog)
    I’ve written before about the fundamental unfairness of the Department of Justice’s practice of issuing press releases touting indictments but not issuing press releases when the charges are dismissed or the defendant acquitted…
    (Grand Jury Target)
    Earlier this year, Libratus – an artificial intelligence system developed by Carnegie Mellon University – conquered four of the world’s top professional poker players in a Head’s-Up No-Limit Texas Hold’em tournament (one of the most complicated forms of poker)…
    Monika Zdzieborska (Antitrust Connect)
    Economists Must Respect Due Process Too! EU General Court annuls Commission decision blocking UPS/TNT merger
    The judgment reinforces due process and transparency in EU merger control proceedings. The Court made clear that due process standards will be strictly enforced in merger cases, despite the relatively tight deadlines. The Decision was, therefore, annulled for failure to respect rights of defence in relation to the handling of economic evidence by the Commission…
    James Killik (Kluwer Competition)
    How to Write a Significant Antitrust or Appellate Brief
    Judge Loken stressed to us law clerks that his job as an appellate judge is that of a professional writer. He communicates his opinions in writing and a clear articulation of that writing is necessary so attorneys, parties, and judges understand the decision that was made and its reasoning…
    Jarod Bona (The Antitrust Attorney)
    Court of Justice rules on the protection afforded to leniency applicants with respect to the publication of non-confidential versions of infringement decisions.
    The Court of Justice (the Court) provides greater clarity on the protection afforded to leniency applicants seeking to prevent the disclosure of certain information in the published version of infringement decisions.  The Court also finds that hearing officers have wide terms of reference to decide on objections to the disclosure of confidential information.
    Chantal Lavoie (Lavoie Legal)
    No Need to Restrain “Carpet-bombing … with Ugly Throw Pillows”: Creation of the FTC’s Economic Liberty Task Force
    The Federal Trade Commission’s new Economic Liberty Task Force, launched by FTC Acting Chairman Maureen Ohlhausen, is an important step that addresses concerns from this blogger and others that the FTC’s commissioners should do more to head off the competitive restraints imposed by certain state licensing requirements…
    Steven J. Cernak (Antitrust Connect)
    Merger control and innovation: are emerging concerns justified?
    Merger control is making the headlines like it’s 2002. Yesterday, the General Court annulled the Commission decision in UPS/TNT Express. If you have not seen it yet, the reason behind the annulment is interesting: in essence, the GC held that the rights of defence of the merging parties had been breached insofar as the Commission failed to communicate the final version of the econometric model on which its conclusions were based.
    Pablo Ibañez Colomo (Chilling Competition)
    Why is Antitrust Compliance Counseling and Training So Important?
    If, like me, you have ever spoken to someone that faces criminal indictment by a federal grand jury following a Justice Department antitrust investigation, you know why antitrust compliance counseling and training is a big deal
    Jarod Bona (The Antitrust Lawyer)