Antitrust Law

70-Year-Old Lawyer Hits One-Year Mark in Jail in Contempt Case

A year ago, a Los Angeles County superior court judge sentenced lawyer Richard Fine to jail indefinitely after he refused to provide personal financial information in an attorney fee dispute. Now? He is still in jail, Dan Walters writes in a column for the Sacramento Bee, if not still a…

Mar 10, 2010 7:03 PM CST

Employees of 5 Companies Charged in Alleged Bribery Plot; Substandard Foods Sold

Federal prosecutors have accused a food supplier of orchestrating a scheme to pay bribes to get food companies to buy foods that were sometimes substandard. Frederick Scott Salyer, the owner of tomato processing company SK Foods, has been charged with racketeering, fraud and obstruction of justice, the New York Times…

Feb 25, 2010 1:21 PM CST

Meet Microsoft GC Brad Smith: He Put ‘a Smiling Face on an Aggressive Strategy’

Even when Microsoft was facing antitrust sanctions from the European Union, the company’s chief lawyer kept his sense of humor. Legal counsel Brad Smith joked with Europe’s antitrust lawyer about the way negotiations were like the movie Fatal Attraction, according to the Seattle Times blog Microsoft Pri0. In the movie,…

Feb 23, 2010 4:50 PM CST

McGuireWoods Denied Fee in $49M BAR/BRI Settlement; Conflict Cited

A federal judge has ruled that McGuireWoods won’t get any attorney fees in a $49 million antitrust settlement with BAR/BRI parent company West Publishing Corp. U.S. District Judge Manuel Real ruled earlier this month that the law firm is not entitled to $12 million in fees because of a conflict…

Feb 18, 2010 1:50 PM CST

Can Patent Holders Buy Off Infringers? Courts Take Another Look

For the second time in three years a case about “reverse payments” is before the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. And this time the New York City-based court may ignore its own binding precedent and do a sharp about-face on the issue. The last time the 2nd Circuit considered…

Feb 15, 2010 2:01 PM CST

The Flip Side of ‘Reverse Payments’

Can patent holders buy off infringers? Courts take another look

Feb 1, 2010 9:00 AM CST

Lawmaker to Mass. AG: Law Schools May Be Misusing Public Funds to Fight Competitor

In a new escalation of an ongoing controversy about whether a non-ABA-accredited law school should merge with the University of Massachusetts, a state lawmaker is calling for an investigation of potential antitrust issues. Three competitors of Southern New England School of Law may be misusing public funds to lobby against…

Jan 30, 2010 2:35 AM CST

NFL Lawyer Faces Skeptical Justices in Bid for Antitrust Pass

U.S. Supreme Court justices yesterday appeared skeptical of an assertion that the National Football League is a single entity that is exempt from the antitrust laws. The argument was that as a single unit, the NFL can’t be accused of conspiring with itself to violate the antitrust laws, the Los…

Jan 14, 2010 1:11 PM CST

Cozen’s Lateral Hiring Spree Includes Baker Hostetler’s Antitrust Chief

Cozen O’Connor has hired three lawyers from Baker Hostetler, including its antitrust chief, capping a year of frequent lateral hires. Cozen O’Connor made more than 100 high-level lateral hires last year, according to a press release. The latest acquisition includes Melissa Maxman, who led the antitrust and trade regulation practice…

Jan 4, 2010 3:25 PM CST

A League of Their Own

The NFL wants to run up the score on its antitrust exemption

Jan 2, 2010 2:49 AM CST

A League of Their Own: NFL Wants to Run Up Score On Its Antitrust Exemption

Usually winners in lawsuits count up their take and go home. They don’t ask the U.S. Supreme Court to take another look. So the National Football League received plenty of attention when it asked the high court to review an antitrust decision that gave it the exclusive right to license…

Dec 29, 2009 5:17 PM CST

Why the FTC Avoided an Antitrust Claim in its Suit Against Intel

Intel’s new general counsel Douglas Melamed may be able to find a silver lining in a lawsuit filed against the chip maker today by the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC alleges anti-competitive practices by Intel but avoids antitrust allegations that could prove more costly for the company. The FTC suit…

Dec 16, 2009 2:44 PM CST

EU Drops Microsoft Antitrust Case; Huge Fines Spur Conciliatory Trend

The European Commission has dropped its antitrust case against Microsoft after the company agreed to offer customers a choice of up to 12 browsers. The settlement calls for Microsoft to send a screen of browser choices to Windows consumers who use Internet Explorer as their main browser, according to the…

Dec 16, 2009 12:28 PM CST

O’Melveny Lawyer Sounds Wistful After Settlement Scuttles Big Case Against Intel

The lead lawyer in what was supposed to have been a huge antitrust case against Intel has mixed feelings about the $1.25 billion settlement that will end the suit. O’Melveny & Myers partner Chuck Diamond sounded a little wistful in an interview, according to Wall Street Journal Digits blog. “The…

Nov 13, 2009 6:17 PM CST

Intel Agrees to Pay AMD $1.25B, Hires WilmerHale Partner as GC

The chipmaker Intel has hired a new general counsel and reached an agreement to pay Advanced Micro Devices $1.25 billion ito resolve all antitrust and patent cross-license disputes between the two companies. “Wowza,” the Wall Street Journal Law Blog writes. “Color us surprised. For a while there, the AMD/Intel antitrust…

Nov 12, 2009 5:45 PM CST