Issue link: http://psai.uberflip.com/i/752214
W EEKLY EDITION NOV 16, 2016 Supreme Court to Hear Association - Related Antitrust Case on Dec. 7 The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Dec. 7 in an antitrust class action dispute over whether membership and governance rights in a trade association is enough to constitute a conspiracy in the event of anti - competitive behavior. The lawsuit Osborn v. Visa Inc. was initially filed in 2011 by several independent operators of automated teller machines (ATMs) who alleged that the agreement that allows them access to the Visa and MasterCard networks is anti - competitive. Though the case was dismissed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the decision last August, ruling that Visa and MasterCard "member banks used the bank associations to adopt and enforce a supracompetitive pricing regime for ATM access fees." The American Society for Association Executives (ASAE) filed an amicus brief in the case earlier this year. PSAI Executive Director Karleen Kos is an ASAE member and has been monitoring the case as it progresses through the courts. ASAE and PSAI's interest in the case concerns the legal rules governing associations and their members. ASAE establishes in its amicus brief that the appeals court decision "dials back critical limits on the pleading requirements for a Sherman Act conspiracy an d puts a target on the backs of associations of all kinds, as well as their members." The consequence of the court of appeals decision is that member banks – or members of any association, by extension – can be found to engage in unlawful concerted action based on conduct that is part and parcel of being a member of an association, such as abiding by its rules or voting for its board members. It is impossible to know when the Supreme Court will render its verdict, though it is unlikely to occur before lat e spring 2017 at the earliest. The PSAI will publish additional information as it becomes available. P AGE 5