Bona Law has once again notched a Ninth Circuit win for a client—this time securing a major antitrust victory on behalf of PharmacyChecker.com. In a May 23, 2025, published decision, the Ninth Circuit rejected an attempt by pharmacy accreditation rival LegitScript to escape liability by accusing PharmacyChecker of an illegal business model.
PharmacyChecker filed suit in 2019, alleging that LegitScript and a network of pharma-backed groups conspired to block it from the online pharmacy verification and price-comparison markets. The complaint was filed in the Southern District of New York and included claims against the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) and other industry groups accused of working with LegitScript to disparage PharmacyChecker and suppress its online visibility. The SDNY court held it lacked personal jurisdiction over LegitScript and transferred that claim to the District of Oregon. It later granted summary judgment for the remaining defendants on antitrust grounds—but that decision cannot yet be appealed because a related Lanham Act false advertising claim against NABP is still pending.
In Oregon, LegitScript argued on summary judgment that PharmacyChecker lacked standing to bring its antitrust claim because it allegedly facilitated the illegal importation of foreign drugs. The district court rejected that argument, and LegitScript sought interlocutory review. On appeal, the Ninth Circuit sided with PharmacyChecker, reaffirming that the antitrust laws do not permit a defendant to avoid scrutiny simply by pointing to alleged wrongdoing by the plaintiff. The court emphasized that "two wrongs don't make a right." Private enforcement remains a core component of antitrust policy—even assuming the plaintiff's business model facilitates illegal conduct. The Ninth Circuit also noted LegitScript's allegations were unsupported by the evidence. Observing that the mere operation or the mere use of the PharmacyChecker.com is not illegal, the court found that the evidence showed a small percentage of PharmacyChecker visitors may have clicked through to foreign pharmacies for "possibly unlawful" drug importations.
"This decision reinforces the principle that vigorous private enforcement of the antitrust laws is essential to protecting competition," said Aaron Gott, partner at Bona Law and lead counsel for PharmacyChecker.com. "It confirms there is no vigilante exception to the antitrust laws and ensures businesses who are excluded from the marketplace by their competitors have a remedy."
Aaron is a seasoned antitrust and appellate litigator with a strong record in the Ninth Circuit. He previously secured a published victory in Ariix v. NutriSearch, where the court broke new ground in Lanham Act false advertising law. In Ariix, the Ninth Circuit held that a purportedly independent product ratings guide could be held liable under the Lanham Act when it secretly rigged its ratings to favor a commercial partner—clarifying the boundaries of "commercial speech" in deceptive marketing cases. Read more about that decision here.
With this latest win, PharmacyChecker's claims against LegitScript will now proceed in the District of Oregon.