Court Refuses to Dismiss a Multimillion Dollar Antitrust Suit Against a Prom Dress Maker

In Hannah’s Boutique Inc. v. Surdej et al., Northern District of Illinois Judge Amy J. St. Eve denied dress seller Peaches Boutique’s motion to dismiss a multimillion dollar suit against it.  In this suit, an upstart dress seller Hannah’s Boutique Inc. accused Peaches of violating U.S. antitrust laws by using its dominant position in the Chicago area and contracting with dress designers to push Hannah’s out of the market.  In its motion to dismiss the suit, Peaches argued that Hannah’s complaint fails to allege that Peaches had a large enough share of the local dress market to put pressure on its competitors.  The court rejected this argument, holding that at this early stage of the litigation, Hannah’s has made enough specific allegations to plead a plausible antitrust case against Peaches.