Week of June 8, 2026 Top Takeaways Class Certification Remains a Major Hurdle in Labor Antitrust Cases: The denial of certification in the outpatient medical center wage-suppression litigation underscores courts’ increasing scrutiny of expert models and the difficulty of proving classwide impact and damages across diverse labor markets. Industry Certification Programs Face Continued Antitrust Scrutiny: Although the court dismissed the core antitrust claim in National Auto Too

Week of June 1, 2026 Top Takeaways Access Restrictions and Platform Governance Become Central Antitrust Themes: Cases against Microsoft, Phantom, and Porsche advance theories that dominant firms can unlawfully foreclose competition through platform controls, interoperability restrictions, and access to essential functionality. Judicial Scrutiny of Exclusionary Conduct Remains Exacting: Decisions in Element Biosciences v. Illumina and NECEC Transmission v. Campos reaffirm that

Week of May 26, 2026 Top Takeaways Structural Relief Remains the Preferred Merger Remedy: The consent judgment in United States v. Constellation Energy reflects continued reliance on divestiture packages, hold-separate obligations, and trustee oversight to address localized competitive concerns under Section 7. Labor-Market Antitrust Claims Face Standing Hurdles: Hanna v. Hackensack Meridian reinforces that plaintiffs must plead injury to competition in a defined labor market

Week of May 18, 2026 Top Takeaways Aftermarket and Interoperability Theories Continue to Evolve: Cases against Porsche, Deere, Sennebogen, and CoStar reflect expanding Section 2 theories focused on control of repair tools, proprietary ecosystems, and access to platform infrastructure. Actavis-Based Reverse-Payment Litigation Produces Landmark Verdict: The Amitiza jury verdict reinforces the continued viability of large-and-unjustified-payment theories and demonstrates juries’

Week of May 11, 2026 Top Takeaways Aftermarket and Access-Control Theories Gain Traction: Fleet Salvage v. Porsche and Bantam v. Huntsville Utilities reflect continued reliance on aftermarket monopolization and essential-access theories targeting firms that allegedly leverage proprietary systems and regulatory authority to foreclose rivals. Platform Conduct Analysis Becomes More Nuanced: The Sezzle v. Shopify ruling demonstrates courts’ willingness to distinguish between acti

Week of May 4, 2026 Top Takeaways Information Sharing and Vertical Restraints Remain Central Enforcement Themes: Twomey v. Ace Hardware and Ellman v. BTL advance Section 1 and 2 theories targeting coordinated pricing architectures, resale restraints, and data-sharing mechanisms that allegedly suppress intrabrand and local-market competition. Courts Continue to Sustain Complex Foreclosure Theories: Decisions in Teva v. Corcept, ZoomInfo v. ZenLeads, and FTC v. Zillow demonstra

Week of April 27, 2026 Top Takeaways IP Misuse and Merger Challenges Expand Antitrust Frontiers: New suits targeting alleged sham patent enforcement in smart devices and consolidation in media markets highlight continued use of Section 2 and Section 7 theories to police both innovation markets and large-scale transactions. Courts Continue to Enforce Strict Market-Definition Standards: Dismissals in cases involving airlines, housing development, and legal-services platforms un

Week of April 20, 2026 Top Takeaways Antitrust Claims Expand into New Industries: A lawsuit in the Christian music touring space shows that antitrust risk can arise in any industry where a few players control access to key opportunities or customers. Courts Require More Than Similar Pricing: Judges dismissed claims where plaintiffs could not show actual coordination, emphasizing that similar pricing alone doesn’t prove a conspiracy. Real Estate and Membership Rules Still Un

Week of April 13, 2026 Top Takeaways Market Power Through Data and Contracts Under Fire: Lawsuits against CoStar claim the company used exclusivity and data restrictions to block competitors, highlighting risks for businesses that control key information platforms. Regulators and Plaintiffs Target Industry Coordination: Cases involving trading cards and advertising practices show continued scrutiny of both mergers and coordinated standards that may limit competition. Courts D

Week of April 6, 2026 Top Takeaways Tech and Hiring Practices Draw New Lawsuits: A resume platform and major employers face claims they used unfair tactics to block competitors and limit worker mobility, showing antitrust risks in both digital and labor markets. More Cases Follow Major Price-Fixing Allegations: New filings tied to fertilizer and healthcare pricing disputes show how large antitrust cases continue to generate additional claims across industries. Settlements Pro

Week of March 30, 2026 Top Takeaways Control Over Data and Supply Chains Faces New Challenges: Lawsuits against CVS and a sports data provider claim companies used their control of key systems to shut out competitors and raise prices. Courts Reject Weak Conspiracy Claims: Judges dismissed several cases where plaintiffs could not show that coordinated behavior actually harmed competition, not just individual businesses. Some Claims Move Forward Where Harm Is Clear: Courts allo

Week of March 23, 2026 Top Takeaways Section 1 Enforcement Targets Anti-Steering and Network Design: United States v. NYP continues a line of cases challenging dominant-provider contracting restrictions that foreclose narrow networks and tiered pricing mechanisms under rule-of-reason analysis. Parallel Conduct and Bundling Theories Extend Across Markets: HVAC and ski-pass cases reflect increasing reliance on coordinated pricing and tying theories in both commodity and platfo

Week of March 16, 2026 Top Takeaways SEP and FRAND Litigation Evolves Under Section 2: ASUSTek v. Nokia advances claims that deceptive conduct in standard-setting and post-adoption royalty demands can constitute exclusionary conduct and monopolization in technology markets. Horizontal and Vertical Effects Drive Merger Challenges: The Nexstar–TEGNA actions reflect increasing reliance on both local market concentration and nationwide bargaining leverage theories in Section 7 l

Week of March 9, 2026 Top Takeaways Commodity Market Coordination Allegations Expand: Stevens v. Nutrien advances Section 1 claims targeting alleged information exchanges and parallel pricing among dominant fertilizer producers in a highly concentrated global market. Platform Intermediation and Data Standards as Competitive Bottlenecks: DTN v. Gravitate reflects increasing reliance on antitrust theories addressing exclusion through control of proprietary technical specifica

Week of March 2, 2026 Top Takeaways Control of Data and Infrastructure Faces Antitrust Scrutiny: New suits against CUSIP Global and Hudl highlight rising challenges to companies that control essential market infrastructure—from securities identifiers required for capital markets access to sports video data platforms relied on by schools and leagues. Courts Continue Tight Screening of Antitrust Claims: Multiple decisions dismissed claims lacking clear market definitions, antit

Week of February 23, 2026 Top Takeaways Brand and Contract Strategies Face Antitrust Challenges: Lawsuits against UGG owner Deckers and OhioHealth allege companies used litigation and restrictive contracts to block lower-cost rivals, highlighting risks in aggressive IP enforcement and network design. Sports Industry Litigation Expands: Consumers sued the UFC over pay-per-view pricing, and a court temporarily blocked an NCAA eligibility rule—showing that sports governance rema

Week of February 17, 2026 Top Takeaways Group Boycott and Association Liability Reemerge: Terrazzo USA v. NTMA advances classic Section 1 theories targeting coordinated refusals to deal enforced through trade-association membership criteria and material supply controls. Selective Survival of Tying and Exclusive-Dealing Claims: In United States v. Live Nation , the court narrowed market definitions but allowed artist-facing tying and venue-facing ticketing foreclosure theorie

Week of February 9, 2026 Top Takeaways Actavis Framework Continues to Shape Pharma Litigation: The Dexilant ruling reinforces courts’ willingness to infer plausibly anticompetitive reverse payments and potential per se market-allocation theories while limiting exposure to timely overcharge periods. Heightened Judicial Scrutiny of Agreement and Power Allegations: Decisions in Little v. Pacific Seafood and Compass v. Zillow emphasize rigorous application of Twombly standar

Week of February 2, 2026 Top Takeaways Structural Presumptions Drive Merger Challenges: United States v. Reddy Ice reflects continued reliance on Philadelphia National Bank –style concentration analysis, with regulators emphasizing loss of head-to-head rivalry and durable entry barriers in localized markets. Judicial Gatekeeping Narrows Private Antitrust Claims: Decisions in Pease , Dhamala , Brown v. NFL , and OWN Your Hunger reaffirm rigorous application of standing, mark

Week of January 26, 2026 Top Takeaways Antitrust Meets Climate Policy: State of Michigan v. BP advances a novel theory of coordinated fossil-fuel dominance—linking Section 1 and 2 violations to alleged collusion in renewable-energy suppression and climate misinformation campaigns. Heightened Structural Enforcement Continues: The DOJ’s Columbus McKinnon–Kito Crosby suit and the FTC’s Edwards–JenaValve injunction reflect reinvigorated Philadelphia National Bank –style presum