Robins Kaplan Attorneys Nominated for Antitrust Writing Awards 2024

Robins Kaplan LLP is pleased to announce that William Reiss and Laura Song’s article, “Pointers for Tackling Antitrust Class Action Set Aside Orders,” has been nominated for Concurrences’ 2024 Antitrust Writing Awards in the category of Business Articles.

Concurrences’ Editorial Committee selected and nominated the best 150 Business Articles from a pool of 700 submissions.The final winners will be determined based on readers’ votes and the opinions of Concurrences’ handpicked jury.

You can read the nominated article and cast your vote here

Pointers For Tackling Antitrust Class Action Set-Aside Orders
By William Reiss and Laura Song
Law360, August 2023

Courts in antitrust class actions are increasingly granting set-aside orders for the benefit of class counsel. Set-aside orders require parties in parallel litigation — opt-outs in particular — to contribute portions of any monies received in settlements to cover work or expenses incurred by class counsel that benefits their own cases. Though courts have traditionally limited set-aside orders to mass torts cases, some courts, recognizing their utility, have granted such orders in the antitrust context.

Not surprisingly, disputes over the propriety of set-aside orders have arisen in antitrust class actions. These disputes have created tension and strife between class counsel, defendants, and opt-outs. This article will summarize recent court opinions on this issue and analyzes the arguments both in favor of and against granting set-aside orders in antitrust class actions. We will conclude by providing guidance to practitioners to help them navigate this thorny issue, if not avoid the dispute altogether.

The winning articles will be recognized during the Concurrences Awards Ceremony and Dinner on April 9, 2024.