Hollis Salzman and Kellie Lerner, two partners with Robins
Kaplan Miller & Ciresi LLP, will be speaking on Oct. 15 about
the key antitrust issues all lawyers should be aware of when
counseling their clients. Specifically, Salzman and Lerner will
provide a primer on the most important aspects of antitrust law
that affect businesses.
For example, the antitrust laws are designed to protect businesses
from the harmful effects of anticompetitive conduct, such as
unlawful monopolization and collusion by the large, powerful
companies from which they purchase goods. Small businesses are
often the first and most directly affected victims of
anticompetitive activity because suppliers control the price,
availability and other essential inputs that they need to transact
business and make products. Thus, when suppliers violate the
antitrust laws, businesses face higher prices, lower quality
products, poor service and fewer options. The result is higher
costs and lower profit margins.
With a basic tutorial on antitrust law, lawyers will be able to
advise their clients on the fundamentals of antitrust law so that
they can both avoid antitrust scrutiny and know what to look for to
avoid being harmed by antitrust violations themselves.
Additionally, Salzman and Lerner will explain the process for
submitting a claim when an antitrust class action case results in a
large settlement that impacts businesses. An antitrust class action
lawsuit is one brought on behalf of many similarly situated
plaintiffs (in legal parlance, "class members"), which alleges that
a company or companies have engaged in anticompetitive
practices.
While some antitrust lawsuits go to trial, many settle beforehand.
When a class action lawsuit settles, notice is sent to class
members to advise them of the pending settlement and their rights.
Generally, a claim form is sent some time after the notice of the
settlement. Class members, including businesses, often ignore these
claim forms because of the mistaken belief that they are not worth
the time to complete. Yet in a recent distribution of combined
settlements in a high-profile antitrust case, the average monetary
recovery was $67,850. Thus, lawyers can provide a substantial value
to their clients by advising them on the proper procedures for
submitting a claim form in an antitrust class action. Salzman and
Lerner will walk through these procedures so that you can provide
this service to your clients in the future.
To learn more about these issues and other hot antitrust topics,
please join us on Oct. 15 from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. for a lively
discussion followed by a networking reception.