In '''''Leegin Creative Leather Prods. v. PSKS, Inc.''''', 127 S. Ct. 2705 (2007), a 5-4 [[U.S. Supreme Court]] overturned nearly 100 years of precedent in [[antitrust law]] and held that [[resale price maintenance]] is lawful if based on a reasonable justification. This decision overruled the precedent of ''[[Dr. Miles Medical Co. v. John D. Park and Sons Co.]]'', 220 U.S. 373 (1911), in which the Court had established the rule that it is [[per se]] illegal under § 1 of the [[Sherman Act]], 15 U.S.C. § 1, for a manufacturer to agree with its distributor to set the minimum price the distributor can charge for the manufacturer's goods.
+
+
The Court relied on respected economic analysts to conclude that vertical price restraints can have procompetitive effects and thus should be judged by the [[rule of reason]]:
+
+
:"Minimum resale price maintenance can stimulate interbrand competition -- the competition among manufacturers selling different brands of the same type of product -- by reducing intrabrand competition -- the competition among retailers selling the same brand. See id., at 51-52, 97 S. Ct. 2549, 53 L. Ed. 2d 568. The promotion of interbrand competition is important because 'the primary purpose of the antitrust laws is to protect [this type of] competition.' Khan, 522 U.S., at 15, 118 S. Ct. 275, 139 L. Ed. 2d 199."
+
+
Justice [[Anthony Kennedy]] wrote the decision and was joined by the [[conservative]] wing of the Court.
+
+
Advocates of [[stare decisis]], including the [[liberal]] wing of the Court, complained about the overturning of this longstanding precedent.