Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, WORTH NOTING: Other Antitrust and Trade Regulation developments, (Oct 24, 2025)

By WK Editorial Staff

A periodic roundup of other items of interest to the Antitrust and Trade Regulation community.

ANTITRUST—N.D. Ill.: The federal district court in Chicago upheld a Special Master’s Report and Recommendation concerning discovery in a suit alleging a price fixing cartel among major television station owners and operators that manipulated the price of advertising spots. Plaintiffs challenged log entries in the privilege logs of Meredith Corporation, Nexstar Media Group, Inc., Raycom Media, Inc., E.W. Scripps Company, Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., and TEGNA, Inc. The vast majority of the challenged documents were Sinclair’s. The Special Master recommended that the court order Defendants to produce all but 16 of the 6,893 withheld documents in which Defendants assert attorney-client privilege but supply no information or insufficient information about attorney involvement. Also, the Special Master recommended that the court not allow Defendants to cure deficient log entries on the basis that Defendants had ample opportunity to do so already. The court held that the Special Master appropriately articulated and applied the law governing privileged information, did not abuse his discretion by reviewing the records as presented by the parties, and did not commit clear error in his factual assessment of the privilege logs (In Re: Local TV Advertising Antitrust Litigation, No. 1:18-cv-06785 (N.D. Ill. Oct. 20, 2025)).

ANTITRUST—S.D.N.Y.: The federal district court in New York City granted DXM Co., Ltd. leave to amend a suit to include a new alleged violation of antitrust law by Sulzer Mixpac AG. Additional antitrust violations based on Mixpac’s maintenance of a trademark registration found to be not protectable would not prejudice Mixpac. The addition of the claim was relevant to the allegations that Mixpac came to court with unclean hands, and the proposed amendment will not involve significant additional discovery. Additionally, DXM sought to present an edited version of its original counterclaims alleging that Mixpac used its monopoly power to coerce DXM to enter into the Settlement Agreement. However, DXM did not provide any additional information as to the intended edits, and edits derived from information that was previously known would be untimely. Accordingly, the motion was denied as to amendments to include a claim based on “earlier violations of the antitrust laws” (Sulzer Mixpac AG v. DXM Co., Ltd., No. 1:19-cv-09404-LAP (S.D.N.Y. Oct. 16, 2025)).

ANTITRUST NEWS: Hausfeld announced that the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal has found unanimously in favor of Dr Rachael Kent; finding that that that Apple has abused its dominant position by unlawfully excluding rivals and charging unlawfully high fees on purchases of apps, app subscriptions and in-app purchases made by UK iPhone and iPad users, resulting in losses over a ten year period of around £1.5 billion. In doing so, the Tribunal found that “In our view, [Apple’s] restrictions cannot sensibly be justified as being necessary or proportionate to deliver the benefits which Apple puts forward as flowing from its objective of an integrated and centralised system. On the contrary, the competition which would exist absent the restrictions is in our view much more likely to deliver the benefits that consumers want, in the form and at the price point they want them.”

ANTITRUST NEWS: The Michigan State Medical Society (MSMS) announced that it recently became a co-plaintiff in the federal MultiPlan lawsuit, filed in federal district court in Chicago. The suit alleges that MultiPlan, a company that provides out-of-network claims processing for insurance companies, violated federal antitrust laws by using billing information from its client companies to drive down payments for medical services over a ten-year period. MSMS said it has joined the suit on behalf of its member physicians to seek injunctive relief to end to these unfair practices.

ANTITRUST NEWS: European Commission Executive Vice-President Teresa Ribera at the European Parliament's Plenary session on October 20, 2025, explained the EC’s decision to impose a fine on Google on September 5, 2025, for abusing its dominant position in the display advertising technology or adtech industry: “The purpose of our antitrust laws is not imposing fines for the sake of it. It is about changing behaviour, protecting our markets and our citizens. But for the enforcement of our rules, we sometimes need to fine for illegal behaviour."

ANTITRUST NEWS: Doug Gurr, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) Interim Chair, delivered a speech at the International Chambers of Commerce conference 2025. In the speck, Gurr explained why economic growth matters and how an organization like the CMA can be a major contributor to growth.

ANTITRUST NEWS: The European Commission took note of the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union dismissing Teva’s and Cephalon’s appeal against the 2023 judgment of the General Court. In its 2023 judgment, the General Court dismissed an action for annulment against a 2020 Commission decision. In its 2020 decision, the Commission imposed a total fine of around €60.5 million on Teva and Cephalon for agreeing to delay the market entry of a generic version of Cephalon's drug for sleep disorders, modafinil, after Cephalon's main patent had expired. The judgment by the Court of Justice ultimately upholds the Commission’s 2020 decision.

ANTITRUST NEWS: The European Commission announced on October 19, 2025, that it was carrying out unannounced inspections at the premises of several companies active in the ski equipment sector. The Commission has concerns that the inspected companies may have violated EU antitrust rules that prohibit cartels and restrictive business practices

ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS NEWS: The European Commission has approved the acquisition of joint control of Luminace Aggregator, LLC, Karta DevCo, LLC and Luminace TF Aggregator, LLC of the US by Temasek Holdings Limited of Singapore and Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. of Canada. The transaction relates primarily to the development of solar and battery facilities, as well as to the provision of other “decarbonization-as-a-service” solutions in the US and Canada.

CONSUMER PROTECTION—D.N.M.: The federal district court in Las Cruces, New Mexico, denied a request for a preliminary injunction by The Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU), a private non-profit organization overseen by the FTC. The HIWU charged a veterinarian with possessing two “banned substances” (Sarapin and AMP) which federal regulations prohibit for use in thoroughbred horses. HISA Rule 3214(a) bans possession of Sarapin and AMP absent a “compelling justification.” The vet moved to enjoin the proceedings, arguing that the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority and Rule 3214 violate the non-delegation doctrine, Fifth and Seventh Amendments, and the Administrative Procedure Act. Because the vet failed to show harm beyond subjection to the jurisdiction of an allegedly unconstitutional agency, the separation-of-powers claim did not warrant a preliminary injunction. Also, any costs incurred from defending against arbitration and the imposition of civil fines did not result in irreparable harm because the vet can recover monetary damages from HIWU and HISA. Further, there was no irreparable harm stemming from the alleged Fifth and Seventh Amendment violations (Scott v. Horseracing Integrity & Safety Authority, No. 2:25-cv-00632-SMD-GJF (D.N.M. Oct. 22, 2025)).

CONSUMER PROTECTION NEWS: Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown announced a multistate settlement with TFG Holding, Inc. (TFG), an online clothing retailer that offers shoes, clothing, and accessories across several different brands, including JustFab, ShoeDazzle, and FabKids. The settlement resolves claims that the company used negative option marketing practices to deceptively enroll consumers into its VIP Membership Program, and then made it difficult for consumers to cancel their memberships. TFG is accused of offering consumers discounts when they purchased products on its brands’ websites without adequately informing them that if they accepted that discount they would be enrolled in a VIP membership that would bill them $49.95 a month, which could only be used to make future purchases. The attorneys general of both Ohio and Pennsylvania also trumpeted their states’ participation in the litigation and settlements.

STATE UNFAIR TRADE PRACTICES NEWS: Samuel Levine, Senior Fellow at UC Berkeley Law’s Center for Consumer Law & Economic Justice and former Director of the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, emphasized the urgent need to modernize D.C.’s consumer protection laws in testimony before the D.C. Council’s Committee on Public Works and Operations. Levine emphasized the urgent need to modernize D.C.’s consumer protection laws, particularly to address exploitative practices by tech companies that claim to offer “free” services.

Attorneys: Antoinette Pick-Jones (Zuckerman Spaeder) for Cellino & Barnes, P.C. and Walley's Auto Sales, Inc. d/b/a Walley's Marine & Auto Sales Annabelle Emuze (Hausfeld LLP) for One Source Heating & Cooling, LLC and Thoughtworx, Inc. d/b/a MCM Services Group. Evan R. Chesler (Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP) for Hearst Television Inc. Anita K. Mazda (Cooley LLP) for Gray Television, Inc. Eliot A. Adelson (Morrison & Foerster, LLP) for Nexstar Media Group, Inc. Andrew Francis Merrick (Jenner & Block LLP) for TEGNA, Inc. David A. Ettinger (Honigman LLP) for Griffin Communications, LLC. Clark O. Brewster (Brewster & De Angelis, P.L.L.C.) for Jason Scott. John C. Roach (Ransdell Roach & Royse, PLLC) for Horseracing Integrity & Safety Authority and Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit, Andrew Ferguson, Melissa Holyoak and Mark Meador. Michael T Murphy, I (Global IP Counselors, LLP) for Sulzer Mixpac AG. Elizabeth L. D'Amore (Lucas & Mercanti, LLP) for DXM Co. Ltd. and Dentazon Corp. (Hausfeld).

Companies: Cellino & Barnes, P.C.; Walley's Auto Sales, Inc. d/b/a Walley's Marine & Auto Sales; One Source Heating & Cooling, LLC; Thoughtworx, Inc. d/b/a MCM Services Group; Hearst Television Inc.; Gray Television, Inc.; Nexstar Media Group, Inc.; Griffin Communications, LLC; Horseracing Integrity & Safety Authority; Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit; Sulzer Mixpac AG; DXM Co. Ltd.; Dentazon Corp.; Apple; MultiPlan; TFG Holding, Inc.; Luminace Aggregator, LLC; Karta DevCo, LLC; Luminace TF Aggregator, LLC; Temasek Holdings Limited; Brookfield Asset Management Ltd.; Google; Teva; Cephalon

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