IN THE NEWS

Leegin Case, the Aftermath Eighteen months have passed since the US Supreme Court decided Leegin Creative Leather Products, Inc. v. PSKS, Inc. (Leegin). In Leegin, the Court announced that it no longer is automatically unlawful under federal antitrust law for a manufacturer to establish and maintain the minimum resale prices of its retailers.

We are reaching the point where actual market functions are no longer merely predictive. RPM and MAP programs are now beginning to actually happen among the actors in the vertical distribution of products and services. Read more

See related articles:
Group Hits Manufacturers’ Minimum Pricing
Discounters, Monitors Face Battle on Minimum Pricing
Minimum-Price Foes to Use eBay in Effort
Why Some Toys Don’t Get Discounted

California Leads the Way in Franchise and Distribution Law
February 2007 Download PDF

Business Implications of U.S. Supreme Court Leegin Case
On June 28, 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court made it easier for manufacturers to demand that retailers sell goods at prices no lower than a minimum price set by the manufacturer, ruling 5-4 to overrule a decades-old antitrust bar on such minimum resale price agreements. Read about how this resale price maintenance ("RPM") case may impact manufacturers and franchisors. Download PDF

Franchisors Beware: Ninth Circuit Case Gets Tested
In April 2007, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge (in Myers v. Conehead Investments, et al. (aka the Cold Stone Creamery Case)) examined — and ultimately followed — the reasoning in the Ninth Circuit’s 2006 opinion in Nagrampa v. MailCoups. Cold Stone confirms that California courts will be examining alternative dispute resolution clauses in franchise agreements more closely than in other states. The case shows there is a real need to counsel franchisors in navigating through this new environment. Jim Mulcahy wins crucial ruling. (more… Los Angeles Daily Journal) (more… The National Law Journal)

California Leads the Way in Franchise and Distribution Law
February 2007 Download PDF