Antitrust/Competition Litigation

Experience Highlights

• Bayer Healthcare and Elanco Animal Health in the successful defense of an antitrust case concerning alleged exclusive dealing arrangements for topical flea and tick treatments for dogs and cats. Plaintiff Tevra Brands alleged that it had been thwarted in its attempts to sell a generic version of Bayer’s Advantage II and K9 Advantix II products. After a seven-day trial in federal court in San Jose, California, the jury found that Tevra had failed to prove a relevant antitrust market.

• Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals in federal and state class action and non-class litigation alleging antitrust and marketing-related claims regarding one of its leading products. Obtained complete defense verdict in trial in bankruptcy proceeding, defeating certain antitrust and civil RICO claims. 

• Las Vegas Raiders in winning dismissal of an antitrust challenge to the Oakland Raiders’ relocation to Las Vegas and preserving the judgment on appeal to the Ninth Circuit. City of Oakland v. Oakland Raiders et al.

• Major technology manufacturer in securing the dismissal of an antitrust case that alleged an unlawful employee no-poach agreement and preserving the dismissal on appeal.

• Nucor Corporation in defending against antitrust "group boycott" claims, involving a six-week jury trial and later appeal resulting in total exoneration of client. Supreme Auto Transport, LLC v. Arcelor Mittal USA, Inc.

• Golden State Warriors in obtaining dismissal of antitrust lawsuit challenging the defendants' exclusive partnership for ticket resales. StubHub, Inc. v. Golden State Warriors, LLC and Ticketmaster LLC​​​​​​​.

• Koito Manufacturing Co. in indirect purchaser class actions brought on behalf of auto dealers and end-payors alleging price-fixing with regard to automotive lighting products. 

• Major pharmaceutical company in successfully defending against putative antitrust class actions alleging that defendants procured patent by fraud and engaged in sham patent litigation. United Food and Commercial Workers Unions and Employers Midwest Health Benefits Fund, et al. v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp., et al.

• HarperCollins Publishers and Penguin Random House in multiple private retailer litigation matters following on federal and state government investigations into the sale of eBooks. DNAML PTY, Limited v. Apple, Inc., Abbey House Media Inc. v. Apple Inc., and Diesel Ebooks, LLC v. Apple Inc., et al.​​​​​​​

• Visa Inc. in 40 litigation actions, consolidated into MDL 1720, brought by merchants contending that practices relating to so-called "interchange" fees and "no surcharge" rules are anticompetitive.