Washington, D.C., partner Lee Simowitz, who focuses his practice on antitrust, trade regulation, and consumer protection law, has been invited to address the "1st Annual Great Lakes Antitrust Institute: Hot Topics in A New Age of Antitrust Enforcement," to be held November 6, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio.
Simowitz will be a panelist for the discussion, "Are There Any Limits Left on Unilateral Conduct?":
Early in 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a major antitrust decision in Pacific Bell Tel. Co. v. linkLine Communications, Inc. In another 5-4 opinion, the Court adopted a rule further narrowing application of Section 2 by holding that, in the absence of a duty to deal under the antitrust laws, a “price squeeze” alone does not state a claim under Section 2 of the Sherman Act. At the same time that the Court seems to be narrowing Section 2, the federal enforcers seem to be moving in the other direction. The recent decisions of the courts, including the Supreme Court, and the enforcement decisions of the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission may well be on a collision course. Is there any room for “price squeeze” claims under current law? What sorts of Section 2 claims remain strong in light of the relevant Supreme Court decisions? Will the enforcement agencies have better luck than the private plaintiffs who have brought their Section 2 claims to the courts? What are the implications for future litigation?
The seminar will cover other topics, including: