Blog o’ Blogs June

A number of major decisions have piled up in anticipation of the summer sun, with major changes coming to some of the basic landscape features of global Antitrust enforcement and interpretation of once-settled principles in international law. Big decisions on credit cards and Vitamins cases will ripple through the global competition framework as long-standing customs begin to change in areas from damage claims, to monopolistic behaviors, and even the entry of previously banned products into the open market, not to mention the on-going saga of blockchain and crypto-currency grappling. An exciting summer, with hot weather and hotter discussions, lies ahead…

The Bid Rigging Whistleblower –Part 2 Should the Antitrust Division Have a Whistleblower Czar?
Well, no.  Without legislation to create a criminal antitrust whistleblower statute, the Czar might have little to do.  But, the Antitrust Division should make some effort, short of Czardom, to encourage bid rigging whistleblowers…
Robert Connolly (Cartel Capers)

Competition Appeal Court’s ruling in Standard Bank case: A changing of the Tides?
In the first week of June 2018, the South African Competition Appeal Court (CAC) upheld Standard Bank’s appeal and ordered that the Competition Commission (Commission) make available its investigation record to Standard Bank…
Michael-James Currie (Africa Antitrust)

SCOTUS clarifies US law on multi-sided platforms (Amex, the American Cartes Bancaires)
The U.S. Supreme Court has issued today its Opinion in the AMEX case. This is likely to be the most discussed antitrust opinion in the decade…
Alfonso Lamadrid (Chilling Competition)

Dear Antitrusters: Bias Is Ubiquitous. Stick to the Merits.
A recent tweet by Lina Khan, discussing yesterday’s American Express decision, exemplifies an unfortunate trend in contemporary antitrust discourse…
Thom Lambert (Truth on the Market)

The suspense has an end – Highest German court adopts decision with major impact for ongoing damage claims
In July 2005, Germany adopted a new law providing that the limitation period for damage claims is suspended during the investigation of a competition authority (“Suspension Provision”)…
Daniel von Brevern (McDermott Will & Emery)

Monopolistic Behaviour and the Good Society; An Empirical Analysis of Monopoly Power and Social Good
There is an overwhelming body of Economic theory that studies monopolies and for a good reason: a monopoly is prone to taking advantage of consumers…
Eric Tichbourne (Antitrust & Competition Policy Blog)

Antitrust Litigation Update for Health Care Providers
In this Special Report, the authors highlight notable trends in antitrust litigation involving health care providers over the past two and a half years….
Stephen Wu, Chelsea Black & Katharine M. O’Connor (McDermott Will & Emery)

Supreme Court Holds That Government Failed to Show AmEx Anti-Steering Rules Harmed Both Sides of Two-Sided Market
In a five-to-four decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Department of Justice Antitrust Division and several states failed to prove that so-called “anti-steering” provisions imposed by American Express Company on merchants that accept AmEx cards harmed competition…
Jeffrey May (Wolters Kluwer)

Do the commercial benefits of Market Led Proposals outweigh the procurement and IPR risks?
Increasingly the government is looking to the private sector for innovate ideas in the delivery of public infrastructure. Notably the Department for Transport’s (DfT) “Rail Market Led Proposals – Call for Ideas” paper published in March of this year calls for ideas to develop projects to upgrade and transform rail infrastructure and operation but are they compatible with EU procurement law and how is valuable IPR protected?
Katherine Calder and Ash Von Schwan (Bryan Cave EU Competition blog)

Potential Antitrust Issues Lurking in Blockchain Technology
Blockchain technology has burst onto the scene and into the public consciousness over the last few years. While the securities and privacy law questions surrounding blockchain technology have received much attention, perhaps less obvious are the potential antitrust issues raised…
Howard Ullman (Orrick Antitrust Watch)

Disrupt, Compete and Innovate: Should Hong Kong competition law be a gatekeeper for disruptive innovation?
With the exponential growth of technological advancement, our legal, social and economic systems need to respond promptly to creative incentives for disruptive innovators in the marketplace…
Amy Chen, Jon Dodds (Simmons & Simmons)

New Canadian Cannabis / Marijuana Marketing and Labelling Rules
In 2016, Canada’s federal government announced its plan to introduce legislation to legalize recreational marijuana use. The Cannabis Act will, among other things, regulate the promotion and packaging of cannabis and cannabis accessories…
(Canadian Competition & Regulatory Law)

Supreme Court Clarifies Principles of International Comity in Vitamin C Ruling
The Supreme Court clarified the principles of international comity this week in a ruling pertaining to the long-running vitamin C antitrust class action litigation.
Stefan M. Meisner & Ashley McMahon  (McDermott Will & Emery/Antitrust Alert)