California Dental Assn. v. FTC, 526 U.S. 756, 33 (1999)

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788

CALIFORNIA DENTAL ASSN. v. FTC

Opinion of Breyer, J.

truthful advertising if one prohibits all advertising. But since the Association made virtually no effort to sift the false from the true, see 121 F. T. C., at 316-317, that fact does not make out a valid antitrust defense. See NCAA, 468 U. S., at 119; 7 Areeda, ¶ 1505, at 383-384.

In the usual Sherman Act § 1 case, the defendant bears the burden of establishing a procompetitive justification. See National Soc. of Professional Engineers v. United States, 435 U. S. 679, 695 (1978); 7 Areeda, ¶ 1507b, at 397; 11 H. Hovenkamp, Antitrust Law ¶ 1914c, pp. 313-315 (1998); see also Law v. National Collegiate Athletic Assn., 134 F. 3d 1010, 1019 (CA10), cert. denied, 525 U. S. 822 (1998); United States v. Brown Univ., 5 F. 3d 658, 669 (CA3 1993); Capital Imaging Associates v. Mohawk Valley Medical Associates, Inc., 996 F. 2d 537, 543 (CA2), cert. denied, 510 U. S. 947 (1993); Kreuzer v. American Academy of Periodontology, 735 F. 2d 1479, 1492-1495 (CADC 1984). And the Court of Appeals was correct when it concluded that no such justification had been established here.

D

I shall assume that the Commission must prove one additional circumstance, namely, that the Association's restraints would likely have made a real difference in the marketplace. See 7 Areeda, ¶ 1503, at 376-377. The Commission, disagreeing with the ALJ on this single point, found that the Association did possess enough market power to make a difference. In at least one region of California, the mid-peninsula, its members accounted for more than 90% of the marketplace; on average they accounted for 75%. See 121 F. T. C., at 314. In addition, entry by new dentists into the marketplace is fairly difficult. Dental education is expensive (leaving graduates of dental school with $50,000- $100,000 of debt), as is opening a new dentistry office (which costs $75,000-$100,000). Id., at 315-316. And Dental Association members believe membership in the Association is

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