Antitrust and Unfair Competition Law Section

If you've been wondering, the rumors are true... The 2023 Golden State Antitrust & Unfair Competition Law Institute was a huge hit, and we have the photos to prove it! Read more

Welcome to the November 2023 edition of E-Briefs, News and Notes. Read more

This panel will feature antitrust attorneys from law firms, government, and in-house who will discuss what is antitrust and competition law; the life of an antitrust practitioner; how to become an antitrust attorney; and how to apply to our Inclusion & Diversity Fellowship program. Read more

The 2024 UCL Institute will be held on Thursday, January 18 at the City Club Los Angeles. Read more

WELCOME to the OCTOBER 2023 edition of E-Briefs, News and Notes. Read more

In this edition of Competition, we showcase articles from an impressive line-up of antitrust thought leaders who share their views on the topics the California Law Review Commission (CLRC) is currently studying. Read more

This Spring 2023 issue of the Antitrust and UCL Section's Competition Journal is inspired by and dedicated to the study of potential antitrust reforms directed by the California Legislature's Assembly Concurrent Resolution (ACR) No. 95. Read more

We face a disconnect between how many businesses are operated today and how we as lawyers and economists evaluate them to predict a proposed transaction's probable impact on competition. The tools on which we have relied for merger review need to be reassessed as competition today in many industries has evolved to place more emphasis on innovative unique value creation over price rivalry. While it's human nature to crave easy-to-understand rules or set of presumptions, this makes us vulnerable to oversimplified fallacies that ignore the richness and multidimensionality of competition. Read more

Unlike Section 2 of the Sherman Act, the Cartwright Act, California's principal antitrust statute, does not explicitly prohibit monopolization or attempted monopolization. Read more

If the ethos of Silicon Valley could be captured in a single phrase, it would be Mark Zuckerberg’s directive to "move fast and break things." That approach emphasizes the importance of rapid innovation and experimentation, encouraging startups to push boundaries and challenge conventional thinking. It has led to the creation of some of the largest, most valuable companies in the world—ubiquitous "Big Tech" platforms that have helped solidify California as the engine of the American economy. But the rapid growth and increasing dominance of these companies have led to concerns about Big Tech’s potential to stifle competition. Indeed, the major players—Amazon, Apple, Facebook (Meta), Google (Alphabet), and Microsoft—have all been around for a decade or more.2 Read more