John M.Majoras

Practice Leader Business & Tort Litigation

Washington + 1.202.879.7652

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John Majoras co-leads the Firm's Business & Tort Litigation Practice and tries commercial disputes in state and federal courts throughout the country. His work has earned him recognition as a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, the country's premier organization that rigorously distinguishes exceptional trial talent. John's 35 years of trial work have included product liability, consumer class actions, hostile corporate takeovers, copyright, tax, contract, energy, and entertainment issues.

John has established himself as the go-to trial counsel for defending mergers from antitrust challenges. He tried back-to-back merger cases involving the successful defense of STERIS Corporation's acquisition of Synergy Health against a challenge from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), followed by Electrolux Corporation's defense of the Department of Justice's (DOJ) challenge to its proposed acquisition of General Electric's appliance business. Previously, John headed up American Airlines' defense of its merger with US Airways, and he also led the defense of the DOJ's challenge to the merger of Aetna and Humana. Beyond the merger cases, John has won multiple jury trials, including a large class action on behalf of Sanofi in the Southern District of New York.

John's case load extends to other matters most critical to clients. John was the lead trial counsel for Walmart in the cases that have gone to trial as part of the nationwide litigation relating to the company's dispensing of controlled substances. He regularly advises clients in the pharmaceutical, credit card, paper, packaged ice, marine hose, satellite radio, auto parts, waste hauling, farm equipment, health insurance, consumer products, and retail industries on how to defend their antirust and commercial litigation matters.

Experience

  • Yazaki successfully resolves automaker lawsuit alleging price-fixing and bid riggingJones Day represented Yazaki Corporation and Yazaki North America, Inc. in successfully resolving a civil antitrust lawsuit brought by an automaker following Jones Day's filing of motions for summary judgment and to exclude the plaintiff's sole expert witness.
  • Marathon secures Daubert and summary judgment wins dismissing Kentucky AG's antitrust claimsJones Day secured dismissals on behalf of Marathon Petroleum Corporation ("Marathon Corp."), Marathon Petroleum Company, LP ("MPC LP"), and Speedway LLC ("Speedway," and collectively, "Marathon") in an antitrust suit brought by the Commonwealth of Kentucky seeking more than $173.6 million in damages related to the sale of reformulated gasoline ("RFG") in Louisville and Northern Kentucky (collectively, "NKY").
  • Marathon Petroleum and Speedway successfully settle lawsuit alleging violations of Kentucky's price gouging statuteJones Day settled on favorable terms, and obtained dismissal of clients Marathon Petroleum Company and its affiliate, Speedway LLC, a lawsuit brought by the Kentucky Attorney General.
  • Senior executive of major health care provider resolves DOJ investigation into alleged cartel activitiesJones Day represented a former senior executive of a major health care provider facing investigation by the Department of Justice Antitrust Division in the health care industry.
  • Parker Hannifin defends $4.3 billion acquisition of CLARCORFollowing a post-closing antitrust investigation, Parker Hannifin Corporation retained Jones Day to act as antitrust counsel in its litigation with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust Division over the company’s $4.3 billion acquisition of CLARCOR Inc.
  • Level 3 obtains antitrust clearance for $34 billion merger with CenturyLinkJones Day represented Level 3 Communications, Inc. in its proposed $34 billion merger with CenturyLink, Inc.
  • Aetna attempts acquisition of HumanaJones Day represented Aetna Inc. as antitrust counsel in its attempted $37 billion acquisition of fellow health insurer Humana Inc.
  • Parker Hannifin obtains EU General Court reduction of marine hose cartel fineJones Day represented Parker Hannifin Corporation and its Italian subsidiary, Parker ITR Srl, in connection with antitrust investigations in the European Union, the U.S., Brazil, Japan, and Australia relating to the conduct of manufacturers of marine hoses used to transport crude oil to and from ships.
  • Deutsche Bank resolves class action lawsuit over allegations of conspiracy to stifle competition in CDS marketJones Day client Deutsche Bank AG, New York achieved a settlement agreement in an antitrust class action brought by an Ohio union pension plan claiming that Deutsche Bank and other bank defendants conspired to prevent the development of credit default swap ("CDS") exchange trading and CDS futures products in an effort to stifle competition in the CDS market, in turn allegedly raising fund managers' costs.
  • Air China Limited and Air China Cargo resolve multidistrict, class action litigation related to air cargo shipmentsJones Day clients Air China Limited and Air China Cargo successfully resolved multidistrict, class action litigation brought by customers alleging an international conspiracy to impose fuel surcharges on air cargo shipments.
  • Electrolux attempts acquisition of GE appliances businessJones Day represented Swedish appliance maker AB Electrolux as antitrust and labor counsel in its attempted $3.3 billion acquisition of the appliances business of General Electric.
  • STERIS and Synergy Health close $6.2 billion cash and stock combinationJones Day represented STERIS Corporation in its combination with Synergy Health plc in a cash and stock transaction.
  • STERIS defeats FTC's attempt to block Synergy Health acquisition on antitrust groundsIn a rare litigation defeat against the Federal Trade Commission, Ohio based STERIS Corporation prevailed against an antitrust challenge brought in federal court by the FTC, which sought to block STERIS's proposed $1.9 billion acquisition of Synergy Health plc.
  • Yazaki defends against automotive wire harness antitrust class actionsJones Day represents Yazaki North America and Yazaki Corporation in connection with numerous antitrust class action complaints alleging that Yazaki and other auto parts manufacturers violated the Sherman Act by engaging in bid-rigging and price-fixing in sales of automotive wire harnesses and related products.
  • Manufacturer resolves investigation into alleged cartel activitiesJones Day represented a manufacturer facing investigations by multiple competition authorities regarding alleged cartel activity in the autoparts industry.
  • PNC defends against antitrust litigation related to bank interchange feesJones Day represents PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. ("PNC") in a multi-district class action involving bank interchange fees.
  • Essilor acquires controlling stake in Transitions Optical joint venture with PPG for $1.7 billionJones Day advised Essilor International SA in its $1.7 billion buyout of a 51 percent interest in Transitions Optical group from joint venture partner PPG Industries.
  • Aventis Pharmaceuticals successfully defends against monopolization claims based on fraud on the Patent Office theoryJones Day resolved class action claims that Aventis Pharmaceuticals, the exclusive licensee of patents covering DDAVP (a treatment for certain water metabolism disorders), knew that the licensor obtained those patents by fraud before the Patent and Trademark Office.
  • American Airlines merges with US Airways in $11 billion dealJones Day represented American Airlines in the antitrust investigation and federal court challenge to its $11 billion merger with US Airways, which closed after the Department of Justice and State attorneys general agreed to settle their lawsuit that sought to block the deal.
  • SiriusXM Radio resolves antitrust class action litigation related to 2008 mergerJones Day defended Sirius XM Radio Inc. against a class action, treble damages lawsuit filed by satellite radio subscribers, claiming that the 2008 merger of satellite radio providers Sirius and XM violated the antitrust laws and that after the merger the company had imposed certain allegedly anticompetitive price increases.
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    November 2024 Alert

    Cases Pending Before September 1, 2024, Cannot Be Removed to Texas Business Court, Dallas Court Holds

    JULY 2024 Commentary

    New SPC Judicial Interpretation in China Widens Path for Private Antitrust Litigation

    February 2024 Alert

    New Year, New Mass Arbitration Rules From the AAA

    September 2023 Alert

    DOJ Obtains First Divestitures in a Criminal Antitrust Case

    June 2023 Alert

    U.S. Supreme Court Allows Personal Jurisdiction Based on Corporate Registration

    May 2023 Alert

    Texas Legislature Passes Law Creating New Business Courts

    May 2023 Alert

    DOJ Loses Fourth Consecutive Criminal Antitrust Prosecution in Labor Markets

    November 2022 Alert

    DOJ Brings First Criminal Monopolization Case in 50 Years

    April 2022 Commentary

    DOJ Makes Giving Up Harder: Stricter Requirements for Seeking Leniency

    May 2021 Alert

    U.S. Supreme Court Delivers Procedural Win to Corporate Defendants in Climate Change Litigation
    View All

    Additional Publications

    • 2017
      STERIS: the limits of imagined competition (book chapter in The Obama Trials: The US Antitrust Agencies in the Courtroom, 2009-2017, Editor Ron Knox, published by Global Competition Review)
    • 2012
      ABA Section of Antitrust Law, Antitrust Law Developments (7th ed. 2012), editor
    • May 2012
      What Companies Can Learn From AU Optronics, Law 360
    • February 6, 2012
      Considerations of the Foreign Trade Antitrust Improvements Act on Criminal Prosecution of Indirect Export Sales
    • March 25-27, 2009
      You Too Can Win Antitrust Cases: The Myths and Realities of Trying an Antitrust Case to a Jury, American Bar Association
    • October 2004
      Changes in Competition Enforcement on the Global Stage, The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel
    • Summer 1987
      The 'New' Wave in Smoking and Health Litigation -- Is Anything Really So New? Tennessee Law Review 54(4): 551-602

    Additional Speaking Engagements

    • June 2015
      Using Experts in Antitrust Cases, GCR Live
    • March 2015
      Antitrust Developments, ABA White Collar Crime Conference
    • May 16, 2013
      New Antitrust Challenges for U.S. Companies Around the Globe
    • June 7, 2012
      Jones Day Chicago 2012 MCLE University
    • February 1-3, 2012
      International Cartel Workshop, ABA Section of Antitrust Law in Conjunction with the International Bar Association
    • April 21-23, 2010
      58th Annual ABA Antitrust Law Spring Meeting
    • November 12, 2009
      Litigation Potpourri
    • November 6, 2009
      Class Wars: Has the Standard for Class Certification Changed?, panelist, 1st Annual Great Lakes Antitrust Institute
    • June 8, 2009
      Preparing for the Unexpected, a Jones Day Competition Law Conference
    • March 25-27, 2009
      You Too Can Win Antitrust Cases: The Myths and Realities of Trying an Antitrust Case to a Jury, 57th Antitrust Law Spring Meeting (published in conference materials)
    • October 2007
      Navigating through Multi-Jurisdictional Conspiracy Investigations and Parallel Class Actions National Competition Law Section, 2007 Annual Fall Conference on Competition Law, presented by The Canadian Bar Association; accompanying article entitled Settlement Considerations in Multi-Jurisdictional Price-fixing Litigation: The Defense Perspective (published in conference materials)
    • October 2007
      2007 Antitrust Litigation Course, ABA Section of Antitrust Law; accompanying article entitled The Use of Experts to Address Predominance in Class Certification (published in conference materials)
    • September 2007
      Managing Successful Relationships with the Mother Ship and Avoiding Rebellion by the Colonies, Legal Marketing Association,
    • May 2007
      Extraterritoriality: Applying U.S. Antitrust Laws Outside the U.S., a presentation to the Department of Commerce and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in association with a delegation from the People's National Congress of the People's Republic of China
    • February 2006
      Innovative Strategies to Successfully Litigate and Meet with Business and Legal Challenges, Using Economic Experts in the Battle for Predominance – Defendant's perspective, Law Seminars International – Class Actions
    • November 2005
      Cartel Enforcement Roundtable, ABA Section of Antitrust Law – Fall Forum; accompanying article entitled The Challenges That Lie Ahead for the Amnesty Program (published in conference materials)
    • October 2005
      Private Enforcement of Competition Law: The Example of the Vitamins Case, International Bar Association – 9th Annual Competition Conference; accompanying article entitled, You Want To Do What?! (published in conference materials)
    • March 2004
      The Class Action Fairness Act: Restoring Confidence in the Judicial System or Clogging the Federal Courts with State Law Claims, ABA Antitrust Law Section Spring Meeting, panelist
    • October 2003
      Settlement Issues, ABA Section of Antitrust Law Litigation Course; accompanying article entitled Settlement Considerations in Multi-Jurisdictional Price-fixing Litigation: The Defense Perspective (published in conference materials)

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