Supreme Court Cert Denial Preserves Victory for 15 Pharma Companies

The Supreme Court denied the plaintiffs’ Petition for a Writ of Certiorari in Clayworth v. Pfizer, Inc., et al., in which the plaintiffs sought Supreme Court review of a California state antitrust action in which the plaintiffs accused fifteen pharma companies and their trade association of conspiring to fix prices in violation of the Cartwright Act, California’s antitrust statute, by using Canadian drug prices as a floor and preventing cross-border importation.  The rejection ended nine years of litigation, upholding a 2012 decision by the California Court of Appeal that affirmed a 2011 grand of summary judgment in favor of the defendants.

Kaye Scholer’s Antitrust Practice Group Co-Chair Saul P. Morgenstern argued summary judgment in the trial court on behalf of the moving defendants, and Los Angeles based partner Aton Arbisser argued in the California Court of Appeal. The litigation team included Bryant Delgadillo (LA counsel), Karin E. Garvey (NY counsel), Amanda Myers (LA Associate) and Michael Schenk (LA paralegal).