Potential Outcomes Of ‘Apple v. Pepper'

On Nov. 26, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in a potentially landmark antitrust case: Apple v. Pepper, 846 F.3d 313 (9th Cir. 2017), cert. granted, 138 S. Ct. 2647 (2018) (No. 17-204). Respondents Pepper and a putative class of similarly situated iPhone owners are suing Apple for monopolizing, or attempting to monopolize, the market for iPhone applications ("apps"). Respondents seek treble damages under §4 of the Clayton Act. In 2013, the Northern District of California granted Apple's motion to dismiss the case, concluding that "any injury to plaintiffs is an indirect effect resulting from the software developers' own costs," and thus the plaintiffs were barred from bringing suit under the Illinois Brick doctrine. In 2017, the Ninth Circuit reversed and remanded, holding that plaintiffs are direct purchasers and therefore have standing to sue. In June 2018, the Supreme Court granted Apple's petition for writ of certiorari.