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Can You Sue The Phone Company For Antitrust Over Bad Service?
from the good-question dept
The Supreme Court is now hearing arguments on whether or not the big telecom companies can be sued for antitrust violations for providing bad service in places where they were required to open up their lines to competitors. The argument is that, in this case, Verizon provided AT&T with bad service on purpose, and an AT&T customer is suing Verizon, saying it's their fault. It seems like a weak argument, as you would think that he would have to show that Verizon purposely provided AT&T with bad service.
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Great!!!
If the justices uphold that a customer can sue over anti-trust (which IANAL, but I personally cannot see how the lawyers for the plaintiff could be successful with this claim that a third-party could be negatively affected by unfair business practices by the first party to the second,) I think it will be a great day. Now companies who wish to screw with the system by being unfair to their competitors will not just have to worry about the reprocussions from the competitors, but the reprocussions of from the customers of the competitors, who are ultimately the victim of the crime, though not a party to the crime. They are screwed if the court finds the first-party liable/guilty, and they are screwed if the court finds the first-party not-liable/innocent.
I think it is about time that the government start watching out for the customers, because Lord knows in the current corrupt business climate, the companies for the most part aren't. ("Lets cook the books, raise the prices of our products, use the legal system against our customers, and then cry that it was our customers that made us do everything when we get caught with our hands in the cookie jar.")
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