Notable Verdict / Settlement
$1.06 Billion — In re Urethane Antitrust Litigation

Bio

Sharon Robertson is a Partner at Cohen Milstein and a member of the Antitrust practice group.

Ms. Robertson has been repeatedly recognized for her success in leading complex, multi-district antitrust litigation. In 2019, The National Law Journal named her as one of nine “Elite Women of the Plaintiffs Bar,” an award that recognizes female lawyers who “have consistently excelled in high-stakes matters on behalf of plaintiffs over the course of their careers.” In 2018, the American Antitrust Institute honored her with its prestigious “Outstanding Antitrust Litigation Achievement by a Young Lawyer” award for her role in securing one of the largest recoveries on behalf of end-payors in a federal generic suppression case in over a decade. Similarly, for three consecutive years, The Legal 500 has selected her as a “Next Generation Lawyer” (2017 -2019), an honor bestowed upon only 10 lawyers under 40 years old across the country, who are positioned to become leaders in their respective fields. Likewise, The New York Law Journal recognized her as a Rising Star (2018) – one of only twenty individuals selected to receive this honor. In addition, Benchmark Litigation selected Ms. Robertson for inclusion on its “40 & Under Hot List” (2018) and Law360 named her as one of five “Rising Stars” (2018) in the field of competition law whose “professional accomplishments belie their age,” as did Super Lawyers (2014-2016). Ms. Robertson has also been recognized by Law360 as one of a few female litigators to secure leadership roles in high-profile MDLs, such as In re Lidoderm Antitrust Litigation (March 16, 2017).

Ms. Robertson is spearheading the firm’s efforts in cutting-edge and industry-defining pay-for-delay pharmaceutical antitrust lawsuits, which allege that the defendant brand manufacturer entered into non-competition agreements with generic manufacturers in order to delay entry of lower-priced generic products. Ms. Robertson also heads up the firm’s generic price-fixing cases, which allege that certain generic drug manufacturers conspired to inflate the prices of generic drug products. These cases come on the heels of a government investigation led by the U.S. Department of Justice alleging similar conduct, which, while ongoing, has already resulted in indictments and guilty pleas.

In addition to leading complex MDLs, Ms. Robertson is an accomplished trial lawyer. She served as a trial team member in two of the largest antitrust cases tried to verdict, including In re Urethanes Antitrust Litigation, where the jury returned a $400 million verdict, which was trebled by the Court, as required by antitrust law, to $1.06 billion, resulting in the largest price-fixing verdict in U.S. history, as well as In re Nexium Antitrust Litigation, the first pharmaceutical antitrust case to go to trial following the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in FTC v. Actavis, 570 U.S. 756 (2013).

Ms. Robertson represents End-Payor Plaintiffs in the following pay-for-delay pharmaceutical antitrust cases in which the firm serves as Co-Lead Counsel:

In re Lipitor Antitrust Litigation (D.N.J.): Plaintiffs allege that Pfizer, the manufacturer of the cholesterol drug Lipitor, the best-selling drug in pharmaceutical history, conspired with Ranbaxy, the generic manufacturer, to delay its introduction of a generic Lipitor product. On August 21, 2017, the Third Circuit handed a sweeping victory to Plaintiffs, reviving their antitrust claims. This case was ranked by Law360 as “The Biggest Competition Cases Of 2017 So Far” (July 7, 2017).

In re Loestrin Antitrust Litigation (D.R.I.): Plaintiffs allege that Warner Chilcott PLC and three others entered into an agreement to delay the introduction of a generic version of the contraceptive drug Loestrin. Following the First Circuit’s remand of the case for further proceedings, on August 21, 2017, the District Court, in an unsealed opinion, stated that Defendants must face multidistrict litigation. Discovery is currently ongoing.

In addition, Ms. Robertson serves as a member of the executive committee in similar pay-for-delay cases in which Cohen Milstein plays a significant role in coordinating discovery, including: In re Niaspan Antitrust Litigation (E.D. Pa.) and In re ACTOS Antitrust Litigation (S.D.N.Y.). Ms. Robertson also represents direct purchaser plaintiffs in In re Intuniv Antitrust Litigation (D. Mass.) and In re Ranbaxy Fraud Antitrust Litigation (D. Mass.).

Ms. Robertson has successfully litigated the following notable matters:

Urethanes (Polyether Polyols) Antitrust Litigation: Cohen Milstein was Co-Lead Counsel in an antitrust class action alleging a nationwide conspiracy to fix the prices of polyether polyols. Ms. Robertson played a leading role in helping obtain settlements with several defendants for $139 million and was a member of the trial team that obtained a $400 million jury verdict (trebled to more than $1 billion), which was affirmed on appeal by the 10th Circuit. The case against Dow ultimately settled for $835 million while Dow’s petition for certiorari was pending before the Supreme Court, bringing the total recovery to $974 million – nearly 250% of the damages found by the jury.
In re Lidoderm Antitrust Litigation (N.D. Cal.): Plaintiffs allege that Endo and Teikoku, manufacturers of the Lidoderm patch, paid Watson Pharmaceuticals to delay its generic launch. The case settled on the eve of trial and on September 20, 2018, Plaintiffs obtained final approval of a $104.75 million settlement– more than 40% of Plaintiffs’ best-case damages estimate. This case was ranked by Law360 as “The Biggest Competition Cases Of 2017 So Far” (July 7, 2017).
In re Solodyn Antitrust Litigation: Cohen Milstein served as a member of the executive committee and Ms. Robertson played a significant role in coordinating discovery on behalf of the End-Payor Plaintiffs. The case, which settled mid-trial, resulted in a $43 million recovery for the Class.
In re Blood Reagents Antitrust Litigation: Plaintiffs alleged that the two leading producers of blood reagents, Ortho–Clinical Diagnostics, Inc. and Immucor, Inc., conspired to raise prices on traditional blood reagents (TBRs). In September 2012, Immucor reached a settlement with Plaintiffs. On July 19, 2017 the Court denied in part Ortho’s Motion for Summary Judgement. Ms. Robertson was slated to serve as one of four lead trial counsel in the case, which was set for trial in June of 2018 but ultimately settled.
Albany and Detroit Nurses Litigation: Cohen Milstein represented registered nurses employed by hospitals in Albany and Detroit in class actions alleging a wage-fixing conspiracy. Ms. Robertson obtained settlements with five Albany Defendants totaling over $14 million. In the Detroit case, Ms. Robertson helped obtain $98 million in settlements with eight Defendants.
Indonesian Villagers Litigation: Ms. Robertson represented Indonesian villagers in a lawsuit against Exxon Mobil over torture and extrajudicial killings allegedly committed by the Defendant’s security forces (a unit of the Indonesian military).

Ms. Robertson co-chairs the firm’s Professional Development and Mentoring Committee and serves on the firm’s Diversity Committee. She is also an active member of the Executive Committee for the Antitrust Section of the New York State Bar Association.

While attending law school, Ms. Robertson was an intern in the Litigation Bureau of the Office of the New York State Attorney General and the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Additionally, while in law school, Ms. Robertson was selected as an Alexander Fellow and spent a semester serving as a full-time Judicial Intern to the Hon. Shira A. Scheindlin, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Ms. Robertson graduated from State University of New York at Binghamton, magna cum laude with a B.A. in Philosophy, Politics and Law. She earned her J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, where she served as Notes Editor of the Cardozo Public Law, Policy and Ethics Journal.

Prior to attending law school, Ms. Robertson worked on the campaign committee of Councilman John Liu, the first Asian American to be elected to New York City’s City Council.

Sharon K. Robertson

Cohen Milstein

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