Industry Eye: Shop Talk

Instead, such arrangements are subject to a "rule of reason." Here, each agreement is separately evaluated to determine whether the pricing restriction's anti-competitive effects outweigh its pro-competitive benefits.

As might be expected, the reaction to Leegin has been mixed. Though most manufacturers welcomed the decision, many retailers and politicians have been highly critical. But proposed federal legislation, the Discount Pricing Consumer Protection Act, would amend the Sherman Act to make minimum resale price maintenance agreements, per se, unlawful. The attorneys general of 35 states have signed on in support of this bill.