Supreme Court Lets Stand Ruling Curbing Bid-Rigging Prosecutions

The US Supreme Court left intact a ruling that curbs the Justice Department’s ability to use federal antitrust law to prosecute people and companies for bid-rigging, price-fixing and other collusion.

The justices, without comment, turned away a Biden administration appeal aimed at reinstating the bid-rigging conviction of a former sales manager at a North Carolina construction company.

At issue was the standard prosecutors must meet to prove illegal collusion occurred among companies that are both competitors and partners. A federal appeals court said companies with those types of arrangements can sometimes reach bidding agreements without running afoul of federal antitrust ...