New antitrust suit against NCAA says players’ compensation caps should be lifted

Sports labor lawyer Jeffrey Kessler filed an antitrust suit on Monday that seeks to lift compensation caps for college basketball and football players. The suit (PDF), filed in New Jersey federal court, names as defendants the NCAA and the five largest college conferences, report USA Today and ESPN. The complaint…

Mar 18, 2014 12:31 PM CDT

Longtime supplier sues Trader Joe’s over claimed peanut-butter-filled pretzel monopoly

A longtime supplier of peanut-butter-filled pretzels to Trader Joe’s has filed an antitrust and breach-of-contract suit contending that the supermarket chain conspired with manufacturer ConAgra Foods Inc. to corner the market on the snack treat. The suit, filed last month in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleges that “ConAgra and Trader…

Feb 21, 2014 11:00 PM CST

2nd Circuit puts court-appointed monitor back to work in Apple e-book case but limits his duties

A federal appeals court has put a Washington, D.C., lawyer back to work as an $1,100-an-hour court monitor while an appeal of his appointment is pending in a hard-fought New York case in which Apple Inc. was accused of conspiring with publishers to fix e-book prices. However, the role of…

Feb 11, 2014 9:30 PM CST

Federal judge rebukes Apple for its conduct to court-appointed monitor, defends his $1K hourly rate

Weighing in for the first time on a long-simmering dispute between Apple Inc. and a court-appointed monitor, a federal judge in New York on Monday rebuked the company for its treatment of the monitor and defended his $1,100 billable hourly rate. The computer Goliath had sought an order removing Goodwin…

Jan 14, 2014 5:10 PM CST

Apple feuds with court-appointed BigLaw monitor over his access, firm’s 2-week $138K bill

The relationship between Apple Inc. and a Goodwin Procter partner appointed by a federal court to monitor the company’s compliance with antitrust laws concerning its e-book marketing hasn’t been going well. In a Monday filing in the Manhattan case accompanied by hundreds of email copies, monitor Michael Bromwich says Apple…

Dec 31, 2013 6:09 PM CST

Law firm’s exclusive bus-advertising contracts don’t appear to violate antitrust law, judge rules

A federal judge has tossed antitrust claims against a Pennsylvania law firm that had exclusive contracts for law-firm advertising on buses, on a popular radio station at rush hour, and at the Wells Fargo Center sports arena. U.S. District Judge Cynthia Rufe ruled on Friday, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. The…

Dec 17, 2013 4:07 PM CST

Airline merger deal OK’d by Justice Department

The U.S. Justice Department has approved a settlement that would allow the merger of American Airlines and U.S. Airways. The deal calls for the two airlines to sell 104 takeoff and landing slots at Ronald Reagan National Airport in Washington, and 34 slots at La Guardia Airport in New York,…

Nov 13, 2013 3:40 PM CST

Class ruling in players’ suit against the NCAA is a split victory

Both sides declared victory when a federal judge certified a class action on Friday in a suit against the National Collegiate Athletic Association by athletes challenging the use of their likenesses without compensation. U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken allowed the class action by current and former Football Bowl Subdivision and…

Nov 12, 2013 6:36 PM CST

Hearsay

Nov 1, 2013 8:09 AM CDT

Federal judges urged by DOJ lawyers to stay civil cases because of government shutdown

Federal judges are being asked to stay civil cases because of the government shutdown caused by the budget impasse. Prosecutors throughout the country started filing requests for extensions of time yesterday, explaining that they will be prohibited from working, even on a voluntary basis, except for what one filing characterized…

Oct 1, 2013 10:40 PM CDT

Should Mississippi AG’s suit against LCD makers be heard in state court? SCOTUS to decide

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments Nov. 6 in a case filed by Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood against the makers of LCD screens. Hood claims the companies engaged in price fixing, resulting in higher prices that are illegal under Mississippi consumer protection law. The issue is whether the…

Sep 18, 2013 11:25 AM CDT

Justice Sotomayor presides over re-enactment of historic baseball case

Sep 1, 2013 9:29 AM CDT

Law firm’s exclusive ads on Philly buses violated antitrust law, competitor’s suit alleges

A personal injury law firm in Philadelphia claims in a lawsuit that a competitor violated antitrust law with exclusive advertising contracts for ads on the exterior of Philadelphia buses. The suit by Larry Pitt & Associates claims Lundy Law also locked up advertising at the Wells Fargo Center and on…

Aug 29, 2013 2:20 PM CDT

Howrey trustee reaches two ‘monumental’ settlements; ex-employees may now recover some cash

The trustee for the defunct Howrey law firm will recover millions of dollars of fees from a law firm that hired 11 of its antitrust partners and will use the money to pay off most of its debt to Citibank. Trustee Allan Diamond called the new settlements “monumental” and “a…

Aug 19, 2013 12:03 PM CDT

Justice Department sues to block proposed merger of American Airlines with US Airways

The U.S. Justice Department has filed an antitrust suit in an effort to block the $11 billion merger of American Airlines with U.S. Airways. The merger would create the world’s largest airline and hamper competition, the Justice Department says. The Associated Press, Bloomberg News, the New York Times DealBook blog,…

Aug 13, 2013 3:18 PM CDT