United States Fourth Circuit

Bankruptcy trustee's Sherman Act Section 1 and 2 claims fail as a matter of law and, in any event, the indirect purchaser rule of Illinois Brick Co. v. Illinois, 431 U.S. 720 (1977), bars trustee's ability to recover compensatory damages.

Appellate Information

• Argued 06/05/2002
• Decided 10/28/2002
• Published 10/28/2002

Judges

• Before WILLIAMS and GREGORY, Circuit Judges, and MICHAEL, JR., Senior United States District Judge for the Western District of Virginia, sitting by designation.

Court

• United States Fourth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• ARGUED:  Michael K. Kellogg, Kellogg, Huber, Hansen, Todd & Evans, P.L.L.C., Washington, D.C., for Appellants.  David Bruce Tulchin, Sullivan & Cromwell, New York, New York;  Paul M. Smith, Jenner & Block, L.L.C., Washington, D.C., for Appellees.   ON BRIEF:  Mark C. Hansen, Steven F. Benz, Scott K. Attaway, Kellogg, Huber, Hansen, Todd & Evans, P.L.L.C., Washington, D.C.;  R. Stephen Berry, J. Daniel Leftwich, Gregory Baruch, Berry & Leftwich, Washington, D.C.;  Nelson Roach, Nix, Patterson & Roach, Daingerfield, Texas, for Appellants.   Daryl A. Libow, Joseph J. Matelis, Sullivan & Cromwell, New York, New York;  Thomas W. Burt, Richard J. Wallis, Steven J. Aeschbacher, Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, Washington;  Michael F. Brockmeyer, Piper, Marbury, Rudnick & Wolfe, L.L.P., Baltimore, Maryland;  Charles B. Casper, Montgomery, McCracken, Walker & Rhoads, L.L.P., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania;  Steve W. Berman, Hagens Berman, L.L.P., Seattle, Washington, for Appellee Microsoft.  Susan R. Podolsky, Jenner & Block, L.L.C., Washington, D.C.;  Jerold S. Solovy, Barbara S. Steiner, Jenner & Block, L.L.C., Chicago, Illinois;  Samuel R. Miller, Folger, Levin & Kahn, L.L.P., San Francisco, California, for Appellee Dell;  William D. Coston, Martin L. Saad, Venable, Baetjer, Howard & Civiletti, L.L.P., Washington, D.C., for Appellee Compaq;  G. Brian Busey, Morrison & Foerster, L.L.P., McLean, Virginia;  Penelope A. Preovolos, Morrison & Foerster, San Francisco, California, for Appellee Packard Bell.