On October 9, 2024, Judge Brantley Starr of the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas granted summary judgement in favor of Coherent’s client Vizient, Inc., a leading healthcare group purchasing organization (“GPO”).
Vizient was the subject of an antitrust lawsuit brought by Endure Industries, Inc., which alleged that Vizient engaged in exclusionary conduct and had foreclosed Endure from the market for medical supplies sales to hospitals following a failed bid by Endure to provide supplies through Vizient’s GPO agreements with hospitals.
Coherent Senior Managing Director Dr. Rob Maness was retained by counsel for Vizient as an expert in antitrust and health economics. A team at Coherent including Dr. Maness, Brian Segers, Dr. Vivek Shah, Matt Gunden, Jack Kurila, Jenna Gonzales, Jacob Pagel, and Sahil Rizal analyzed issues relating to market definition and the pro-competitive effects of GPO contracts and rebate programs, among other issues. In his order granting complete summary judgement in Vizient’s favor, Judge Starr noted that “Endure has failed to establish a legally acceptable definition of the relevant market.”
Vizient was represented by attorneys from Haynes Boone’s Dallas office including Ron Breaux, Benjamin Goodman, Bill Morrison, Andrew Guthrie, Ashley Koos, and Ben Breckler.