Federal Judge Skeptical of Visa’s Push to Toss US Antitrust Case
The DOJ alleged that Visa entered into multiple agreements penalizing merchants who sought alternatives and paid potential rivals to stay out of the market.
Photographer: Gabby Jones/BloombergThe federal judge overseeing the Justice Department’s antitrust lawsuit against payments giant Visa Inc. expressed skepticism at the company’s effort to dismiss the case at the current early stage of the litigation.
At a hearing on Thursday in Manhattan federal court, US District Judge John Koeltl asked a lawyer for Visa several times why he should throw out the case now, when a number of factual disputes remain. “The issue of market definition and what companies should be included” are questions of fact that can’t be resolved on a motion to dismiss, Koeltl said.