On August 10, 2021, the Second Circuit, in a 2-1 decision,  affirmed the dismissal—for the second time—of price-fixing claims against a pair of Chinese vitamin C exporters, after the Supreme Court had remanded it for further consideration.  Animal Science Prods., et al., v. Hebei Welcome Pharma. Co. Ltd., et al., 13-4791-cv (2nd Cir. Aug 10, 2021).  Following the Supreme Court’s directive to “carefully consider but not conclusively defer” to submissions from the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, a three-judge panel of the Second Circuit agreed that the case should, nevertheless, still be dismissed on international comity grounds.  This decision—involving the Chinese government’s first appearance in a U.S. court—was unusual for an antitrust case in that there was no real dispute that the alleged anticompetitive conduct occurred.  Instead, the question centered on “whether Chinese law required the Chinese sellers’ conduct.”

On July 5, 2020, Chief Judge Barbara M.G. Lynn of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division denied Sharp Corporation’s (“Sharp Japan”) motion to dismiss claims that Sharp Japan colluded with other technology companies in refusing to license their standard essential patents (“SEPs”) on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (“FRAND”) terms.  Continental Auto. Sys., Inc. v. Avanci, LLC, No. 3:19-cv-02933-M (N.D. Ill. July 5, 2020). 
 

On December 28, 2017, Judge William Orrick of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California denied a motion for summary judgment by defendants facing antitrust claims alleging a conspiracy to fix the prices of Korean ramen.  In re Korean Ramen Antitrust Lit., No. 3:13-cv-4115-WHO (N.D. Cal. Dec. 28, 2017).  In so ruling, Judge Orrick rejected defendants’ argument that principles of international comity required the Court to defer to a Korean Supreme Court decision overturning conspiracy findings and fines levied by the Korean Fair Trade Commission (“KFTC”).  The Court also ruled that there was sufficient evidence that the conspiracy impacted ramen prices in the United States, in particular for ramen manufactured in the United States, and that plaintiffs should therefore be permitted to move forward with their claims.

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