Antitrust Lawsuit Lawyers

Antitrust law is a broad range of state and federal laws in the United States that govern business businesses in order to encourage competition. Antitrust law attempts to limit monopolistic corporate activities. It contributes to the promotion of a free market economy by giving consumers a decent degree of choice in the marketplace for products and services.

What Is an Antitrust Violation?

There are various ways in which a business can violate antitrust laws. The courts use the “per se infractions” criterion to investigate potential antitrust violations.

All that must be established in court under this framework is that the party accused of antitrust crimes committed one of numerous “per se offenses.” The accused’s intent and the consequences of their actions are irrelevant.

The following are some of the more typical and well-known antitrust violations:

• Price fixing;
• Lockup agreements;
• Concerted refusals to trade; and
• Mergers in which the primary and sole competitor is dissolved

The Three Most Important Federal Antitrust Acts

Federal antitrust law is divided into three major areas of law. These three federal acts are enforced by the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission.

Most states have their own antitrust laws that are enforced by the states. Private parties can also play a role in antitrust enforcement since certain laws allow individuals to initiate lawsuits alleging anticompetitive business conduct.

The following are the three primary federal acts that form federal antitrust law.

1890 Sherman Antitrust Act
The Sherman Act prohibits contracts and conspiracies that limit trade and encourage monopolization.

Agreements among competitors to fix prices, rig bids, and allocate clients amongst or among them are examples of prohibited activity under the Sherman Antitrust Act.

These actions are punishable as criminal felonies. Convicted persons may face fines or possibly prison sentences imposed by the courts.

Furthermore, courts may issue orders prohibiting further offenses. The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division primarily enforces the Sherman Act’s provisions;

Clayton Act of 1914
The Clayton Act deals with illegal restraints such as exclusive dealing arrangements, tie-in sales, price discrimination, mergers and acquisitions, and interlocking directorates. Only civil fines are imposed for violations of the Clayton Act.

The Clayton Act is jointly enforced by the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission. The Act also allows private parties to sue in federal court for damages and to prevent future violations.

Federal Trade Commission Act
The Federal Trade Commission is the primary enforcer of the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTC). This act is regarded as a catch-all set of laws designed to include all of the restrictions contained in the other antitrust statutes. However, other measures close loopholes in more explicit regulatory statutes.

In Antitrust Lawsuits, How Is Expert Testimony Used?

Both parties must provide expert economic testimony to prove or refute culpability and damages in almost all antitrust litigation. If either the plaintiff or defendant can prohibit the other party’s expert from testifying, the case of that side will be significantly weakened.

Expert testimony is frequently used in antitrust cases to demonstrate how the defendant’s alleged actions hampered economic competition.

In other words, the plaintiff’s expert must testify about how the market would have been if the defendant’s behavior had not occurred. In contrast, the defendant’s expert must testify about how the market would have been the same regardless of the defendant’s conduct.

How Do Experts Get Qualified to Testify in Antitrust Cases?

The Supreme Court ruled in 1993 that before providing scientific expert testimony to the jury, the trial judge must establish that it is “relevant and credible.”

In 1999, this was broadened to cover all expert witnesses, including expert economic testimony in antitrust litigation. Because these decisions have raised the bar for competence, it is easier for parties to dismiss the other side’s experts as unqualified.

What Role Do State Antitrust Laws Play?

Many states have antitrust laws of their own. They are generally similar to federal antitrust laws, allowing private people to sue firms that engage in anticompetitive behavior.

While state and federal antitrust laws are fundamentally identical, the specific provisions in state codes differ greatly.

Some state antitrust statutes, for example, closely resemble the text of federal antitrust legislation. Other states’ statutes incorporate portions of federal antitrust legislation. They may specify certain categories of forbidden conduct, and some may completely encompass new areas of substance.

In terms of the types of activity that are illegal, state antitrust laws frequently cover broader ground than federal antitrust statutes. State courts’ interpretation of state antitrust legislation frequently, but not always, reflects the interpretation of federal antitrust laws.

The following are some instances of state antitrust laws:

The Cartwright Act of California
This is California’s primary antitrust law. It forbids a wide range of anticompetitive practices by California-based businesses.

The Cartwright Act forbids any agreement between competitors to impede commerce, fix prices or output, or reduce competition. Private parties may launch lawsuits alleging violations of the Cartwright Act.

Private parties filing Cartwright Act claims are typically competitors alleging unfair competition. They could also be consumers who claim that price fixing or trade constraints have increased their prices for goods and services.

Price fixing occurs when competitors agree to acquire or sell products, services, or commodities at the same fixed price or rate.

Group boycotting occurs when competitors agree to boycott a specific entity.

A market division scheme is an agreement between or among competitors to split markets, products, customers, or territories among themselves rather than allowing customers to choose which business to support.

Exclusive dealing entails compelling a buyer to purchase all of a specific product from a single supplier or a seller to sell all of a specific product in its inventory to a single customer.

Price discrimination occurs when the same or similar commodities are sold at different prices to different buyers. The goal is usually to drive one of them out of business to offer another an advantage.

Tying is the practice of selling a product or service on the condition that the consumer also purchases another product or service from the company.

Unfair Practices Act of California
In California, illegal price discrimination is prohibited by the California Unfair Practices Act (CUPA). Private parties may pursue lawsuits against firms that engage in unlawful acts under the Act.

The CUPA forbids price discrimination when the purpose is to reduce competition. Acts that represent reasonable efforts to compete with competitors are not illegal.

The following acts are prohibited:

• Selective Payment of Secret Commissions or Rebates: When a company covertly pays rebates, commissions, or other special services to some consumers but not others, it may be illegal since the payments reduce competition. For example, a company may sell a product to many distributors while secretly offering a discount to all except one to push it out of business.
• Price Discrimination: When businesses provide varying pricing for the same service to force competitors out of business, this is known as price discrimination. A cable firm, for example, with a single competitor in one territory may decrease its pricing to force the competitor out of business.
• Selling a Product or Service Below Cost: To force competitors out of business, some corporations sell products below the cost of manufacturing or purchasing them. When a competitor departs the market, these organizations can gain a long-term market share by momentarily losing money.
• Loss Leaders: “Loss leaders” are things a company sells for less than the cost of producing or acquiring them. These products are discounted to encourage sales of other products or services. A cell phone firm, for example, may sell phones to clients at a price lower than what it costs to acquire or build them to attract them to its highly profitable service contracts.

Do I Require the Services of a Business Attorney?

If you have an antitrust issue, you should consult a business attorney with experience in antitrust litigation.

A business attorney will understand the best tactics for presenting expert witnesses to help your case while undermining the opposing side’s experts. Remember that an expert witness is key to presenting a successful antitrust case.