John F. Cove, Jr  is Of Counsel in the Litigation and Antitrust practices.

He focuses on representing clients in antitrust matters, including price fixing, boycott, and monopolization cases, direct and indirect purchaser class actions, and unfair competition actions in federal and state courts across the nation. John’s antitrust work spans a wide variety of industries, including telecommunications, energy, software, semiconductors and related high-technology industries, financial services, airlines, chemicals, entertainment and other consumer products.

John represents clients in federal grand jury investigations of alleged cartel activity and other criminal offenses, in premerger reviews before federal and state antitrust authorities, and in investigations and proceedings by competition authorities outside the United States. In addition to his antitrust work, he maintains an active securities and general commercial litigation practice, and has defended corporations and individuals in class and non-class actions alleging securities fraud and related offenses in federal and state courts, and in proceedings with the SEC.

Before joining Shearman & Sterling, John was a partner for 15 years at Boies Schiller & Flexner LLP, where he also concentrated on antitrust. He is a former trial attorney with the Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice, where he prosecuted criminal price fixing and bid rigging cases, conducted premerger reviews, litigated challenges to anticompetitive mergers, and served as a senior member of the trial team in United States v. Microsoft. He also served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for the Northern District of California.

In addition to his Government service with the Department of Justice, John spent two years as a clerk for the Hon. Edward D. Re, Chief Judge of the United States Court of International Trade.

• Defended a major technology company in a jury trial of a consumer class action alleging monopolization in the portable music player industry and seeking over $1 billion in total damages. Jury verdict for the defendant; judgment entered; no appeal.
• Represented a major financial services firm in a bench trial of a challenge by the US DOJ’s Antitrust Division to provisions of merchant contracts, as well as in related multidistrict litigation brought by individual merchants and putative classes.
• Defended a major consumer electronics company in multidistrict litigation alleging antitrust violations in the optical disk drive industry.
• Represented various boards, board committees, and independent directors in internal investigations of alleged malfeasance at different companies
• Defended the nation’s leading casket company in a putative class action alleging antitrust violations in the funeral services industry.  Defeated motion for class certification in the district court; affirmed by the Fifth Circuit.
• Defended a major food products company in putative class action in California state court alleging unfair competition law claims based on allegedly fraudulent assertion of patent and other intellectual property rights. Defeated class certification in the Superior Court; affirmed by the California Court of Appeal.
• Represented a credit card network in an antitrust action against competitors for exclusionary practices.  Case settled for a total of approximately $4 billion.
• Represented several firms and individuals in antitrust grand jury investigations in the United States and in inquiries/proceedings by competition law authorities elsewhere (e.g., European Union, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, Mexico, Brazil).
• Represented firms in antitrust and consumer protection investigations by the California and other states’ Attorneys General.
• Represented major telecommunications companies in Antitrust Division and FCC regulatory review of mergers/acquisitions.
• Defended an airline company against a private antitrust challenge to a merger with another carrier, allowing the merger to be consummated the day it was cleared by the DOJ.
• Obtained dismissal with prejudice of actions alleging securities fraud and related violations by a healthcare technology company in California state court.
• Obtained the voluntary dismissal of putative class actions alleging price fixing in the sale of passenger tickets against a major US air carrier based on discharge in bankruptcy.
• Settled a $39 million claim by the trustee for a bankrupt internet company for $150,000 after filing a pre-discovery motion for summary judgment.
• Represented a major telecommunications company in federal and state class and individual actions alleging securities fraud and related offenses.
• Represented first-mover file-sharing company in copyright litigation by recording industry and others.

Professional Affiliations

Mr. Cove is the former Vice-Chair of the Executive Committee of the Antitrust Section of the California State Bar. He has taught and lectured on antitrust issues before a variety of audiences, including state, local and foreign authorities, and has been named a Northern California “Super Lawyer” for antitrust for many years.

Other

Mr. Cove is the former Editor-in-Chief of Competition, the journal of the Antitrust Section of the California State Bar, and has been a contributing author and editor for the treatise California Antitrust Law and the ABA Antitrust Practice Handbook on the Merger Review Process. Most recently, Mr. Cove authored a book chapter for Global Competition Review related to antitrust litigation.