Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly
Twombly sued Bell Atlantic for violating Section One of the Sherman Antitrust Act, found in 15 U.S.C. § 1. He complained that the companies created by the breakup of AT&T agreed not to compete with each other and to hinder other companies from entering the local telephone service market. The district court dismissed the case, stating that Twombly needed to establish at least one "plus-factor" in his complaint, which requires a reason why individual self-interest is an unlikely explanation for the companies' behavior.
On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed the district court's decision, remanding the case to the district court. The court of appeals held that all that is necessary in an antitrust complaint is an allegation of a conspiracy and sufficient facts that establish the conspiracy, and that plus-factors are not necessary.
Question Presented:
Whether a complaint states a claim under Section 1 of the Sherman Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1, if it alleges that the defendants engaged in parallel conduct and adds a bald assertion that the defendants were participants in a "conspiracy," without any allegations that, if later proved true, would establish the existence of a conspiracy under the applicable legal standard.
