High Court Takes On Verizon Antitrust Appeal Case

Communications Today, March 11, 2003

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday said it would decide whether dominant local telephone companies can be sued for damages by upstart rivals and consumers under antitrust laws for poor or delayed access to local networks. The case, called Verizon Communications [NYSE: VZ] versus Trinko, could open the door for rivals to file lawsuits against dominant phone carriers that hinder competitors from accessing their networks.

New York attorney Curtis Trinko, a local telephone customer of AT&T [NYSE: T], filed the original suit, claiming that federal law gives protection to victims of antitrust violations. The U.S. Appeals Court for the Second Circuit ruled last June that a consumer could sue Verizon for triple damages under the antitrust laws for service delays, reversing a lower court's dismissal of the case. The high court will address whether the appeals court erred by reinstating the antitrust claim. The Supreme Court will hear the case in its upcoming term, which begins in October.

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