Legal Question in Business Law in Iowa

predatory behaviour

Started a local publication. The local newspaper didn't like that and started a similar one.

They're selling ads at an obvious, sizeable loss.

They're pirating the ads we painstakingly created and putting them in their book, with some minor change to protect themselves.

They're putting their books in the distribution racks/boxes bought & paid for by us--and discarding our books.

Also, their publication is nowhere to be seen at most of their claimed distribution sites, and the amount of books they claim to print is laughable. (as an example, they claim to print 12,000 books; we print 10,000 books and have, quite possibly, ten times the distribution sites that they do).

I consider all of the above to be highly unethical, and preditory. Their intent is to run us out of business, quickly and ruthlessly. They know that we, as a small upstart business, are not likely to try to fight the local daily newspaper, as we couldn't afford a big court fight.

With much hard work our product worked well and was popular; now everyone's going with this new pub as it's one fourth the price (it'll surely go way up once they've killed us).

Do we have any recourse to this? If this isn't predatory, what is?


Asked on 4/25/04, 11:57 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Robert Luedeman solo practitioner

Re: predatory behaviour

If they're pirating your advertising material it's a potential violation of copyright law. If they're interfering in your business by removing your materials from the receptacles you have paid for they may be liable for interference with contractual relationships you have with third parties and that is actionable.

In either case there is no criminal violation here and the burden will be on you to sue them and be prepared for all that that entails. If you have the legal basis for it they may be enjoined from interfering in your business during the pendency of the action.

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Answered on 4/26/04, 1:15 pm


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