Texaco Inc. v. Dagher (2005)
- Docket
- 04-805
- Decided
- 2005-01-01
Summary
Question: Does Section 1 of the Sherman Act always prohibit a lawful joint venture from setting the prices at which its goods will be sold? Conclusion: No. In an 8-0 decision (Justice Alito not participating), the Court ruled that the per se rule against price-fixing should not be applied to price-setting by joint ventures. The opinion by Justice Clarence Thomas held that "though Equilon's pricing policy may be price fixing in a literal sense, it is not price fixing in the antitrust sense." The Court distinguished 'horizontal' price-fixing schemes between competitors, which are per se illegal, from the "internal pricing decisions of a legitimate joint venture," which are not.