Try our Advanced Search for more refined results
Competition
-
November 26, 2024
Jackson Hewitt Workers Get Final OK On $10.8M Settlement
A federal judge granted final approval to a $10.8 million settlement between former Jackson Hewitt Inc. workers and the tax preparation firm over claims the company's franchisees entered into an anti-competitive no-poach agreement despite the provision being removed from the company's franchise agreements.
-
November 26, 2024
Pac-12 Agreed To 'Poaching' Clause, Mountain West Insists
The Pac-12 Conference "unconditionally" agreed to all of last year's scheduling agreement with the Mountain West Conference, including a multimillion-dollar "poaching penalty,'' Mountain West claimed in California federal court, pushing back at the Pac-12's argument that the fee for luring away five teams is illegal.
-
November 26, 2024
Streaming Biz Brightcove Sold In $233M Go-Private Deal
Streaming technology company Brightcove Inc., advised by Goodwin Procter LLP, has agreed to go private and be bought by Latham & Watkins LLP-led software company Bending Spoons in an all-cash deal valued at around $233 million.
-
November 25, 2024
Drake Says UMG Paid To Boost Kendrick Lamar's Diss Track
Universal Music Group conspired with Spotify to blast Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us" single to the top of the airwaves by using bots, pay-to-play agreements and other shady tactics at the expense of Drake and other artists, the Canadian rapper alleged Monday in a Manhattan court filing.
-
November 25, 2024
Ad Tech Judge Says Google 'Completely Different' From Amex
The Virginia federal judge weighing the fate of Google's display advertising placement business cast doubt Monday on a key element of the company's defense, asserting during closing arguments that the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Amex decision, requiring consideration of two-sided markets, is far removed from Google's ad tech stack.
-
November 25, 2024
Tuna Price-Fixing MDL Lead Attys Awarded $86M In Fees
A California federal judge has agreed to award a combined total of $86 million in fees and costs to lead counsel representing two classes of canned tuna buyers who reached settlements in recent months with StarKist, Dongwon Industries and Lion Capital in a decadelong price-fixing case.
-
November 25, 2024
Gov't Defends EB-5 Rule That Hikes Up Petition Fees
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and its U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services agency pushed for an early win in Texas federal court against a suit challenging increases for filing fees for petitions related to USCIS' EB-5 immigrant investor program.
-
November 25, 2024
Grayscale Seeks Win In Rival's $2M Unfair Practices Suit
Digital asset management firm Grayscale Investments LLC seeks a quick finding in its favor that certain securities-related conduct it is being sued over did not violate Connecticut's unfair trade practices law because the law has a securities matters carveout.
-
November 25, 2024
Credit Bureaus Freed From VantageScore Antitrust Suit
An Illinois federal judge has ruled there is no evidence the three major credit bureaus conspired with the Fair Isaac Corporation to engage in a monopoly, reasoning there was no impetus for them to do so, but also found that credit score buyers sufficiently backed some of their antitrust claims against FICO.
-
November 25, 2024
Conn. Athlete Training Firm Ends Feud With Ohio Ex-Worker
A Connecticut company that orchestrates military-style team-building events for corporations and university athletic teams on Monday settled a short-lived employment lawsuit with an Ohio man it had accused of attempting to poach or meddle with its collegiate accounts in at least seven states.
-
November 25, 2024
Judge Bemoans 'Chaotic' Contracts In Jack Nicklaus IP Case
The New York state judge presiding over golf legend Jack Nicklaus' intellectual property lawsuit on Monday signaled he may not be able to untangle a set of contradictory contracts, which could lead to a trial over who can use the "Golden Bear's" name and likeness.
-
November 25, 2024
FTC's Antitrust Case Against Meta Gets April Trial Date
A D.C. federal court has set an April 14 trial date for the Federal Trade Commission's antitrust case accusing Meta of monopolizing personal social networking through its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp.
-
November 25, 2024
DOJ Says Realtor Commissions Deal Is No Antitrust Shield
The U.S. Department of Justice warned the National Association of Realtors that changes to broker commission rules agreed to in a settlement with home sellers do not shield the industry from government antitrust scrutiny.
-
November 25, 2024
Atty Sanctioned Over Depo Misconduct In Blank Rome Suit
An attorney's alleged personal attacks against opposing counsel, refusal to answer questions and wrongful invoking of attorney-client privilege for certain documents led a Philadelphia federal court to order sanctions against her in an order published Monday.
-
November 25, 2024
Trump 2.0 Expected To Maintain Tech Antitrust Cases
President-elect Donald Trump has promised dramatic changes with his pending second term, but antitrust practitioners are anticipating a return to normal after four years of an aggressive Biden administration that's seemed skeptical of big business on the whole, though they also don't expect enforcement to be lax.
-
November 22, 2024
PayPal Wants Renewed Suit Over Merchant Rules Tossed
PayPal on Thursday urged a California federal court to again throw out a proposed class action claiming it illegally boosts online retail prices with its restrictive merchant agreements, arguing that the latest version of the complaint doesn't fix any of the issues flagged by the court.
-
November 22, 2024
Europe's Antitrust Enforcer Puts Apple E-Book Probe To Bed
The European Union's antitrust enforcer is dropping its probe into whether Apple's requirement that e-books and audiobooks be bought through in-app purchases in its App Store broke the bloc's competition rules.
-
November 22, 2024
High Court Bar's Future: Sullivan & Cromwell's Morgan Ratner
Morgan L. Ratner has emerged as a leader of the U.S. Supreme Court bar's next generation, and she attributes her ascent to brilliant mentors, a laid-back argument style, an aversion to overconfidence and a firm commitment to clear principles in every case — even if that means reluctantly telling the chief justice, as she once did, that a hypothetical cat stuck in a tree shouldn't be saved.
-
November 22, 2024
Kraft, Others Say No Need To Stay Atty Fees After $53.3M Win
Kraft, Kellogg, Nestle and General Mills have urged an Illinois federal judge not to delay deciding attorney fees following their $53.3 million judgment against egg producers and industry groups, saying further stalling would only prolong the already 13-year-old case.
-
November 22, 2024
DOJ Antitrust Head Tracks 'More Aggressive' Criminal Cases
The outgoing head of the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division used a speech celebrating the anniversary of a major initiative combating bid-rigging and other efforts by government contractors to bilk taxpayer-funded projects to also note that criminal antitrust enforcement more broadly has changed considerably in recent years.
-
November 22, 2024
UK Enforcers Concerned Over Apple Mobile Browser Policies
British competition enforcers said Friday that Apple's policies are holding back innovation in the mobile browser space and called for an investigation of the roles played by Apple and Google in the mobile ecosystem under new rules coming into force next year.
-
November 22, 2024
New Congress Could Undo Rules On Drinking Water, Methane
A consumer advocacy group is warning that Republicans may target a slew of recent and pending regulatory actions when they take control in Washington next year, saying they could make use of the Congressional Review Act to unwind new rules on competition, lead in drinking water, data protection and more.
-
November 22, 2024
FTC Can't Block Amazon's Misconduct Defense In Prime Suit
The Federal Trade Commission can't bar some of Amazon's defenses in an enforcement suit alleging consumers were duped into signing up for Prime delivery service, a Washington federal judge has ruled, allowing the e-commerce giant to argue the regulatory agency engaged in misconduct related to the litigation.
-
November 22, 2024
DC RealPage Antitrust Suit Will Get New Judge In 2025
The District of Columbia's case accusing a slew of landlords of using property management platform RealPage to fix the price of rentals is proceeding on schedule, but the judge who has been overseeing the case is going to be handing the matter off to another at the end of the year.
-
November 22, 2024
Capital One 'Abuses' Cast Pall Over Discover Deal, Dems Say
As the Biden administration winds down with Capital One's bid to buy Discover Financial still pending, progressive Democrats led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are putting renewed pressure on federal bank regulators reviewing the deal.
Expert Analysis
-
4 Steps To Address New Sanctions Time Bar Extension
Recent guidance from the Office of Foreign Assets Control clarifies details of the newly extended statute of limitations for civil and criminal enforcement of U.S. sanctions law, so compliance teams should implement key updates, including to lookback periods and recordkeeping policies, say attorneys at Freshfields.
-
Series
Playing Golf Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Golf can positively affect your personal and professional life well beyond the final putt, and it’s helped enrich my legal practice by improving my ability to build lasting relationships, study and apply the rules, face adversity with grace, and maintain my mental and physical well-being, says Adam Kelly at Venable.
-
What To Expect From CFPB And DOT Card Rewards Inquiry
Following the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's announcement of joint efforts with the U.S. Department of Transportation to investigate credit card rewards points, credit card issuers and airlines should keep a close eye on potential regulatory and class action litigation risks stemming from the inquiry, say attorneys at DLA Piper.
-
Law Firms Should Move From Reactive To Proactive Marketing
Most law firm marketing and business development teams operate in silos, leading to an ad hoc, reactive approach, but shifting to a culture of proactive planning — beginning with comprehensive campaigns — can help firms effectively execute their broader business strategy, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.
-
Remedy May Be Google's Biggest Hurdle Yet In Antitrust Case
There are difficulties ahead in the remedies phase of the antitrust case against Google in District of Columbia federal court, including the search engine giant's scale advantage and the fast-moving nature of the tech industry, setting the stage for the most challenging of the proceedings so far, says Jonathan Rubin at MoginRubin.
-
ECJ Cartel Damages Rulings Are Wins For Multinational Cos.
Two decisions from the European Court of Justice last month clarifying the limits of the single economic unit doctrine in cartel damages proceedings will help multinational companies anticipate and prepare for litigation within a narrower band of possible jurisdictions, say lawyers at Linklaters.
-
Opinion
The Big Issues A BigLaw Associates' Union Could Address
A BigLaw associates’ union could address a number of issues that have the potential to meaningfully improve working conditions, diversity and attorney well-being — from restructured billable hour requirements to origination credit allocation, return-to-office mandates and more, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.
-
Opinion
It's Time For A BigLaw Associates' Union
As BigLaw faces a steady stream of criticism about its employment policies and practices, an associates union could effect real change — and it could start with law students organizing around opposition to recent recruiting trends, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.
-
Look For Flags On Expert Claims After Sunday Ticket Reversal
A California federal judge’s recent reversal of a jury’s $4.7 billion antitrust verdict in the NFL Sunday Ticket case indicates that litigants may be inclined to challenge expert testimony admissibility under Rule 702 of the Federal Rules of Evidence, and that judges may increasingly accept such challenges, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.
-
Takeaways From Virginia's $2B Trade Secrets Verdict Reversal
The Virginia Court of Appeals' recent reversal of the $2 billion damages award in Pegasystems v. Appian underscores the claimant's burden to show damages causation and highlights how an evidentiary ruling could lead to reversible error, say John Lanham and Kamran Jamil at Morrison Foerster.
-
UK Judgment Could Change Anti-Money Laundering Regimes
After the Court of Appeal of England and Wales' determination that criminal property remains criminal property in the hands of its purchaser even if purchased at market value, many businesses could face a new or heightened risk of prosecution for criminality in their supply chains and related money laundering offenses, say lawyers at Macfarlanes.
-
How Justices Upended The Administrative Procedure Act
In its recent Loper Bright, Corner Post and Jarkesy decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court fundamentally changed the Administrative Procedure Act in ways that undermine Congress and the executive branch, shift power to the judiciary, curtail public and business input, and create great uncertainty, say Alene Taber and Beth Hummer at Hanson Bridgett.
-
Jarkesy May Thwart Consumer Agencies' Civil Penalty Power
The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy not only implicates future SEC administrative adjudications, but those of other agencies that operate similarly — and may stymie regulators' efforts to levy civil monetary penalties in a range of consumer protection enforcement actions, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.
-
Mirror, Mirror On The Wall, Is My Counterclaim Bound To Fall?
A Pennsylvania federal court’s recent dismissal of the defendants’ counterclaims in Morgan v. Noss should remind attorneys to avoid the temptation to repackage a claim’s facts and law into a mirror-image counterclaim, as this approach will often result in a waste of time and resources, says Matthew Selmasska at Kaufman Dolowich.
-
Bank M&A Continues To Lag Amid Regulatory Ambiguity
Bank M&A activity in the first half of 2024 continued to be lower than in prior years, as the industry is recovering from the 2023 bank failures, and regulatory and macroeconomic conditions have not otherwise been prime for deals, say Robert Azarow and Amber Hay at Arnold & Porter.