Buchanan Successfully Defends Independent Medical Review Client in Anti-Competitive Behavior Case

Paul Mazeski, Carrie Amezcua and Curtis Schaffner successfully defended client MCMC, LLC when plaintiff Premier Comp Solutions, LLC, filed a seven-count complaint alleging that several entities, including our client, engaged in anti-competitive behavior in violation of the federal Sherman Act and Pennsylvania's unfair competition laws. The plaintiff alleged that the defendants unlawfully conspired to drive it from the workers' compensation cost containment services market. 

After nearly four years of discovery and several amended complaints later, the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania granted the defendants' motions for summary judgment and dismissed the case, with prejudice.

Antitrust and unfair competition cases are extremely complicated and costly, often resulting in extensive discovery, expert testimony, multi-day trials and disruption to the businesses who are named as defendants. Persons and companies seeking redress for anti-competitive harm can also recover treble damages, triple the actual damages, costs of bringing the action (including attorneys' fees) and injunctive relief. 

Therefore, getting this case dismissed without having to go to trial resulted in significant cost savings for our client in the form of future litigation expenses and potential damages. The judge also wrote a well-reasoned, detailed memorandum opinion that will be useful case law in the future.

MCMC is one of the nation’s leading multi-line providers of independent medical review and related services.