It has been a busy year for issues related to drug pricing, and with the election around the corner, litigation issues that have been developing over the last few years are likely to be a key focus for the second half of...more
Introduction A recent ruling condemning price discrimination for a popular eye drop brand is yet another reminder that companies cannot afford to ignore antitrust risk under the Robinson-Patman Act (RPA), a longstanding law...more
The rumors of the death of price discrimination enforcement may have been greatly exaggerated. The Robinson-Patman Act (“RPA”) (15 U.S.C. §13), enacted in 1936, prohibits price discrimination by producers and resellers of...more
On May 20, 2024, US District Court Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald rejected a popular over-the-counter eyedrop seller’s bid for a new trial and granted a pricing injunction impacting two large wholesale membership clubs following...more
After decades of dormancy, the Robinson-Patman Act (RPA), a Depression-era antitrust statute prohibiting price discrimination, has recently become the subject of renewed interest from both private plaintiffs and government...more
Past long-standing chair of Proskauer’s Health Care Department, Ed Kornreich is a recognized authority on the legal, regulatory and business issues related to health care… Past long-standing chair of Proskauer’s Health Care...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has heralded its increased antitrust scrutiny of price discrimination under the Robinson-Patman Act (RPA), though little has come of it to date. Yet, our review of trends in private...more
On March 28, 2024, 14 lawmakers penned an open letter to the Federal Trade Commission urging the agency to revive enforcement of the Robinson-Patman Act. This call to action, coupled with the FTC’s recently renewed interest...more
The American Bar Association Antitrust Law Section’s annual Spring Meeting concluded on April 12. The annual Spring Meeting featured updates from federal, state and international antitrust enforcers and extensive discussion...more
As part of its whole-of-government effort to enforce the antitrust laws, the Biden administration recently launched a new interagency Strike Force on Unfair and Illegal Pricing (Strike Force), which will be co-chaired by the...more
Total Wine & More (Total Wine) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are currently clashing in federal court over a civil investigative demand (CID) that the FTC issued to Total Wine, a third party in the FTC’s investigation...more
In the November edition of our Public Company Watch, we cover key issues impacting public companies, including how to prepare for the 2024 10-K season; the SEC announcing a new intake system for Rule 14a-8 submissions; the...more
There have been reports that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is leveraging the long-dormant Robinson-Patman Act as a basis for civil investigations into potential price discrimination by distributors in the alcoholic and...more
News of a recently filed Federal Court petition against Total Wine & More (“Total Wine”) has brought renewed focus on aggressive actions by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) to enforce antitrust laws, even at great expense...more
Price discrimination under the Robinson-Patman Act (RPA) involves charging different prices to competing buyers for the same product. This was the key issue recently before the Ninth Circuit in U.S. Wholesale Outlet &...more
The Ninth Circuit recently revived a portion of a price discrimination claim brought by wholesalers of the popular 5-Hour Energy drink against its manufacturer, which provided more favorable promotional terms to a mass...more
While government enforcement of the Robinson-Patman Act (the Act) was all but forgotten for nearly two decades, the Federal Trade Commission (the FTC) announced a second investigation over potential price discrimination in...more
As part of the Biden Administration’s enhanced antitrust enforcement efforts, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is taking a new look at the Robinson-Patman Act (RPA). Several investigations are already underway, with calls...more
Antitrust practitioners from around the world gathered in Washington, D.C. the week of March 27, 2023, for a series of industry meetings, centered around the American Bar Association Antitrust Law Section’s 71st Annual Spring...more
The American Bar Association’s Antitrust Law Section recently held its annual Spring Meeting in Washington, DC, featuring updates from federal, state, and international antitrust enforcers and in-depth commentary on leading...more
The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) efforts to revive the depression-era Robinson-Patman Act, which forbids price discrimination, certain types of rebates, and commercial bribery by distributors, will enter a new, more...more
On January 10, 2023 Politico reported that the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has launched antitrust investigations into Pepsi and Coca Cola. According to the article, the “companies’ pricing strategies are being...more
The US Federal Trade Commission’s (“FTC”) reported investigations of Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo. Inc. for price discrimination are a significant step toward the agency’s revival of enforcement under the Robinson-Patman Act...more
According to people with knowledge of the matter, the Federal Trade Commission is conducting a preliminary investigation of Coca-Cola and PepsiCo to determine whether their pricing practices in the soft drink market segment...more
After decades of dormancy, enforcement of the Robinson-Patman Act may be making a comeback. In his first public remarks as an FTC Commissioner regarding his views on antitrust enforcement, Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya called...more