United States and Plaintiff States v. JBS S.A., No. 08CV5992 (N.D. Ill. 2009)
JBS, headquartered in Brazil, sought to acquire National Beef Packing, Inc., headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri. The U.S. Department of Justice and 13 states sued to block the transaction, which, according to the complaint, would substantially restructure the beef packing industry, eliminating a competitively significant packer and placing more than 80 percent of domestic fed cattle packing capacity in the hands of three firms: JBS, Tyson Foods Inc., and Cargill Inc. The complaint alleged that the acquisition would lessen competition among packers in the production and sale of USDA-graded boxed beef nationwide and would lessen competition among packers for the purchase of fed cattle ? cattle ready for slaughter ? in the High Plains, centered in Colorado, western Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas, and the Southwest. In February 2009, the parties announced that they were abandoning the transaction.
Minnesota v. Waste Management of Minnesota (Ramsey Cty. Dist. Ct. 2008)
Plaintiff State alleged monpolization in three counties as a result of evergreen contract provisions by Waste Management, which had 80-90 percent of the waste hauling market. Waste Management agreed to change its contract renewal terms.
State of Colorado et al v. Warner Chilcott, 1:05-cv-02182 (D.D.C.2005)
34 states filed suit alleging that Warner Chilcott entered into an illegal agreement with Barr Pharmaceuticals to raise the prices of Ovcon, an oral contraceptive. The lawsuit alleged that after Barr Pharmaceuticals publicly announced that it planned to have a generic version of Ovcon on the market by the end of the year, Warner Chilcott paid Barr Pharmaceuticals $1 million for an agreement designed to prevent Barr’s generic product from coming to market. Under the terms of the alleged agreement, once Barr received FDA approval to market generic Ovcon, Warner Chilcott had 90 days to pay Barr $19 million, after which Barr would refuse to bring the cheaper generic version to the market. The lawsuit alleged that as a result of the agreement, Warner Chilcott paid Barr a total of $20 million to keep it from marketing its generic version of Ovcon. In additon to a payment of $5.5 million, the settlement prohibits Warner Chilcott, for ten years, from entering into any agreement that would have the effect of limiting the research, development, manufacture, or sale of a generic alternative to one of its drugs. Furthermore, Warner Chilcott must provide the states notice of certain agreements it has entered into with generic manufacturers, and must continue to make its records available to the states for inspection to determine whether the company is complying with the terms of the agreement.
U.S. and Minnesota v. Alltel Corp. et al.06-3631 (RHK/AJB) (D. Minn. 2007)
Alltel Corp. paid $1.3 million to the United States and Minnesota to settle allegations that it violated conditions of its acquisition of Midwest Wireless. Alltel had agreed to maintain the Midwest Wireless assets while it finished the acquisition, so it could divest its service in several rural Minnesota counties because of antitrust concerns. Minnesota and US DOJ accused Alltel of failing to maintain those assets as agreed. The state got $745,000 from the settlement, and the Justice Department got $580,000,
In the Matter of Tri-County Hospital and Wadena Med. Center, No. C4-94-11900 (Ramsey Cty. Cr. Minn., Nov. 30, 1994)
State alleged hospital and large clinic sought to allocate the markets for x-ray equipment and colposcopy equipment.
In the Matter of Warren Supply
Company tied satellite programming and other products to purchase of digital satellite systems.
Minnesota v. Tim Amdahl Chevrolet Co., No. C3-93-676 (Winona Cty. Ct.)
Auto body repair shops fixed prices by providing sham estimates on competitors blank letterhead.
In re Clozapine Antitrust Litigation, MDL No. 874 (N.D. Ill. 1991)
Plaintiff States sought monetary damages and injunctive relief against Sandoz Pharmaceuticals Corporation (Sandoz), alleging the company unlawfully required those who purchased its drug, Clozapine, to also purchase distribution and patient monitoring services from Sandoz.
New York et al. v. Hoffmann-LaRoche, Inc., Roche Vitamin, Inc.; Aventis Animal Nutrition S.A.; Daiichi Pharmaceutical Co. LTD; Eisai Co, LTD; Takeda Chemical Industries, Ltd; BASF Corporation (master case)
In various state court filings around the country, Plaintiff States alleged that Defendants conspired to set the prices of vitamins that go into various products. The exemplar case upon which all other settlements were ultimately based was filed in the District of Columbia in conjunction with various private class actions.