Aspen Skiing Co. v. Aspen Highlands Skiing Corp.
| Aspen Skiing Co. v. Aspen Highlands Skiing Corp. | |
|---|---|
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| Argued March 27, 1985 Decided June 19, 1985 |
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| Full case name | Aspen Skiing Co. v. Aspen Highlands Skiing Corp. |
| Citations | 472 U.S. 585 (more)
105 S. Ct. 2847; 86 L. Ed. 2d 467; 1985 U.S. LEXIS 115; 53 U.S.L.W. 4818; 1985-2 Trade Cas. (CCH) P66,653
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| Holding | |
| The question of intent is relevant to the offense of monopolization under § 2 of the Sherman Act in determining whether the challenged conduct is fairly characterized as "exclusionary," "anticompetitive," or "predatory." The monopolist did not merely reject a novel offer to participate in a cooperative venture that had been proposed by a competitor, but instead elected to make an important change in a pattern of distribution that had originated in a competitive market and had persisted for several years. | |
| Court membership | |
| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Stevens, joined by unanimous |
| White took no part in the consideration or decision of the case. | |
| Laws applied | |
| Sherman Antitrust Act | |
Aspen Skiing Co. v. Aspen Highlands Skiing Corp., 472 U.S. 585 (1985), was a United States Supreme Court case notable as "the very last gasp" of the Harvard School of antitrust.
Throughout his ownership, Aspen Highlands and founder Whip Jones remained at odds with the local rival Aspen Skiing Company, which owned and operated the three other ski areas Aspen Mountain (Ajax), Buttermilk and Snowmass in Aspen, with Jones owning the remaining independent ski area, Aspen Highlands. In 1979, Jones sued the Aspen Skiing Company, alleging violations of the Sherman Act. Aspen Highlands and Aspen Skiing had, for several years, cooperated to sell an "all-Aspen" ticket that allowed a skier to visit Aspen Skiing's three mountains and Aspen Highlands. However, the rival companies were unable to agree on a means to administer this program and distribute proceeds. In 1978, Aspen Skiing decided to discontinue the all-Aspen ticket, and to instead sell only the ticket to the three Aspen Skiing mountains. Aspen Skiing also refused to sell Aspen Highlands any lift tickets to the Aspen Skiing mountains (even at full price), thereby preventing Aspen Highlands from offering its own multi-mountain package.
The issue made it to the US Supreme Court and was decided as 472 U.S. 585 (1985) with Jones winning over $10 million in treble damages.
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