FTC Settles First Robinson-Patman Act Price Discrimination Case

The FTC announced on October 2, 2026 that it has agreed to settle its price discrimination case against Southern Glazer's Wine and Spirits, LLC, described as the first Robinson-Patman Act enforcement action since the statute was amended in 1990 and effectively the first in a generation, marking a revival of a provision most practitioners have treated as dormant. The case concerns discriminatory pricing terms offered to competing wholesale customers; the available source material does not set out the complaint's allegations in detail, the settlement's injunctive terms, or any monetary relief, so the scope of the FTC's theory should be read from the agency's announcement and the administrative order itself. The development matters well beyond wine and spirits: RPA liability turns on the structure of discrimination between similarly situated customers, and the FTC's framing of customer tiers, volume discounts, rebates and promotional allowances will shape how suppliers document pricing decisions. The order and complaint are the next documents to review, since a first-of-its-kind complaint will be cited in client negotiations and in other enforcers' priority setting. Counsel should audit customer agreements, discount and rebate structures, and state-law analogues.