Young Cynn
Subscribe to Young Cynn's PostsBaer to Serve as Acting Associate Attorney General
By Young Cynn on Apr 12, 2016
Posted In DOJ Developments
On Monday, April 11, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) confirmed in a press release that Bill Baer will serve in the DOJ’s third-highest ranking position effective April 17, 2016. Baer will be stepping in for Acting Associate Attorney General Stuart Delery. Attorney General Loretta Lynch praised Baer’s record at the Antitrust Division, noting that...
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FTC Releases Section 5 Guidelines
By Lisa A. Peterson and Young Cynn on Aug 14, 2015
Posted In FTC Developments
On Thursday, August 13, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a Statement of Enforcement Principles Regarding “Unfair Methods of Competition” Under Section 5 of the FTC Act. The statement was passed by a 4–1 vote, with Commissioner Ohlhausen voting against the statement. This is the first time the Commission has issued formal guidelines regarding its...
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Parking Heater Manufacturer Pleads Guilty to Price-Fixing
By Young Cynn on Mar 17, 2015
Posted In Cartel Enforcement, DOJ Developments
On March 12, 2015, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that Espar Inc., pleaded guilty to one count of price-fixing under the Sherman Act in a scheme involving parking heaters for commercial vehicles that ran from October 2007 through December 2012. Parking heaters heat the inside of a vehicle when the engine is not running. According...
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FTC Competition Chief Defends Stand-Alone Section 5 Use in Unfair Competition Cases
By Young Cynn on Mar 16, 2015
Posted In FTC Developments
In a blog post last Friday, Debbie Feinstein, Director of Competition at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), defended the agency’s use of FTC Act Section 5 to target unfair methods of competition outside the scope of the Sherman and Clayton Acts. While the use of Section 5 in consumer protection cases has long been established,...
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Agencies Sign New Cooperation Agreement with Colombia
By Young Cynn on Sep 18, 2014
Posted In DOJ Developments, FTC Developments
The Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust Division announced on September 16 that the DOJ and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have entered into a new antitrust cooperation agreement with Colombia’s Superintendence of Industry and Commerce, stating that the “agreement will enable the antitrust agencies in the two countries to further enhance their law enforcement relationship.” According...
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Wisconsin Legislators Pass Bill to Thwart “Patent Trolls”
By Young Cynn on Mar 24, 2014
Posted In IP Antitrust
On March 20, 2014, Wisconsin lawmakers passed a bill in an attempt to limit the ability of non-practicing entities (NPE) – also commonly referred to as “patent trolls” – to file claims demanding patent licensing payments. Wisconsin Senate Bill 498 applies to all patent owners who wish to file patent infringement claims, but provides exceptions...
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NCAA Compensation Cartel Allegations Take Center Court
By Young Cynn on Mar 18, 2014
Posted In Private Litigation
On March 17, 2014, a class action lawsuit was filed against the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA), alleging that capping compensation to college athletes violates Sherman Act Section 1. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of all Division I college football and men’s basketball players, and named five major conferences within the NCAA as co-defendants:...
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Republicans Press FTC to Establish a Clear Standard for Section 5
By Young Cynn on Oct 29, 2013
Posted In FTC Developments
In a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Wednesday, October 23, eight GOP lawmakers from both the House and the Senate called on the FTC to publish clear guidance on Section 5 of the FTC Act. Section 5 grants the Commission broad authority to regulate “unfair methods of competition” beyond the scope of...
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Support for Airlines Merger Grows
By Young Cynn on Oct 25, 2013
Posted In DOJ Developments, Mergers & Acquisitions
Mayors from Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Fort Worth, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Miami-Dade County wrote to Attorney General Eric Holder on Wednesday, urging him to allow American Airlines Inc. and U.S. Airways Group Inc. to merge. The mayors encouraged the Justice Department to “reconsider [the] ill-conceived lawsuit,” and asserted that the deal would benefit both consumers and...
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Judge Refuses to Suspend Previous Apple, Inc. Ruling; Considers Limiting E-Book Negotiations
By Young Cynn on Aug 12, 2013
Posted In IP Antitrust
by Young Cynn On Friday, August 9, 2013, Judge Denise Cote of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York denied Apple’s request to suspend pending appeal a previous ruling that it had violated antitrust laws by conspiring with publishers to raise the price of e-books. Judge Cote also proposed a remedy...
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