Elai Katz

August 21, 2017 | New York Law Journal

Antitrust columnist Elai Katz writes: In a thorough opinion evaluating the legality of a health insurance merger under antitrust law, the D.C. Circuit considered whether and when efficiencies may offset competitive concerns. Rejecting arguments that anticipated health care cost reductions should spare Anthem's proposed acquisition of Cigna from an antitrust challenge, a split panel upheld an injunction blocking the proposed merger because it was likely to lessen competition without offsetting benefits.

By Elai Katz

10 minute read

April 24, 2017 | New York Law Journal

Elai Katz, in his Antitrust column, reviews a Tenth Circuit decision affirmed the dismissal of claims that leading medical-surgical product distributors violated antitrust laws by offering bundled package deals. While typical bundling and tying cases examine conduct by a single dominant firm, this decision tackles parallel tying and bundling by two competitors. The opinion also sets forth an analytic framework to evaluate tying claims under the rule of reason rather than the more commonly applied per se tying rule.

By Elai Katz

17 minute read

February 24, 2017 | New York Law Journal

Antitrust columnist Elai Katz reviews recent developments, including the Tenth Circuit's affirming the dismissal of antitrust claims asserting concerted denial of access to an essential facility in the natural gas market in western Colorado and a district court's acceptance of a narrow relevant market proposed by the U.S. Department of Justice, ensuring the government's successful challenge to Aetna's proposed acquisition of rival health insurer Humana.

By Elai Katz

18 minute read

December 29, 2016 | New York Law Journal

In his Antitrust column, Elai Katz analyzes two recent developments that have brought attention to information exchanges, a complex and subtle area of U.S. antitrust law. In a simple information exchange case subject to antitrust review, competitors have shared commercially sensitive information with one another without agreeing on a common course of competitive conduct (such as pricing, output, or strategy). Information exchanges, even among direct rivals, can sharpen competition and, unless accompanied by an agreement not to compete, must be shown to have anticompetitive effects in a properly defined market before they can be deemed unlawful.

By Elai Katz

19 minute read

October 24, 2016 | New York Law Journal

Antitrust columnist Elai Katz explores antitrust issues arising from litigation over mergers in 2016: the Federal Trade Commission's challenge to a hospital merger in Pennsylvania and the Department of Justice lawsuits to block a pair of health insurance mergers. The antitrust agencies also brought enforcement actions directed at corporate entanglements, alleging violations of premerger notification and interlocking directorate statutes.

By Elai Katz

17 minute read

June 29, 2016 | New York Law Journal

In his Antitrust column, Elai Katz discusses recent antitrust developments of note including a class action complaint which sufficiently alleged that Uber's pricing algorithm amounted to price-fixing among drivers, according to a district court in Manhattan.

By Elai Katz

26 minute read

February 24, 2016 | New York Law Journal

In his Antitrust column, Elai Katz reviews decisions of note, including the Fourth Circuit's ruling that a national concert promoter and venue operator did not engage in unlawful tying because it did not coerce artists to perform at the allegedly tied venue, a district court's allowing exclusive dealing claims against the leading provider of in-store promotion services to proceed, and key antitrust decisions authored by Justice Scalia.

By Elai Katz

12 minute read

January 25, 2016 | New York Law Journal

Elai Katz, Chair of the Antitrust Law Section, examines courts' interpretation and application of the "rule of reason"—the presumptive mode of analysis for determining whether restraints of trade violate antitrust law—in 'O'Bannon v. Nat'l Collegiate Athletic Ass'n' and 'U.S. v. American Express'.

By Elai Katz

3 minute read

December 23, 2015 | New York Law Journal

In his Antitrust column, Elai Katz discusses recent antitrust developments of note.

By Elai Katz

11 minute read

December 22, 2015 | New York Law Journal

In his Antitrust column, Elai Katz discusses recent antitrust developments of note.

By Elai Katz

11 minute read