antitrust case examples - Virgin Atlantic v. British Airways

Virgin Atlantic v. British Airways Dismissed
Judge Throws Out Case on Summary Judgment

In a decision that "astounded" Virgin Atlantic Chairman Richard Branson, a federal judge threw out a $1 billion lawsuit filed by Virgin Atlantic Airways against our client, British Airways. Virgin Atlantic had sued British Airways, claiming that British Airways' incentive agreements were anti-competitive and predatory. In granting summary judgment, Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum largely adopted the critique of Virgin's expert report prepared by our academic affiliate, Professor Robert S. Pindyck, of MIT's Sloan School of Management. This report found that Virgin could not provide evidence that British Airways engaged in predatory or otherwise anti-competitive conduct.

Principal Richard Starfield and Vice President Steven Herscovici worked with Professor Pindyck to analyze the competitive effects of the incentive programs on certain trans-Atlantic routes. We found that Virgin's claims were theoretically unsound and that British Airways' fares fell as competition grew on these routes, as is expected in a competitive market.