MAX THEILER
Head of Competition
Director
At Fideres, we provide expert economic analysis for complex antitrust disputes involving market abuse and anticompetitive conduct. Our economists help law firms secure new cases and develop compelling evidence for litigation, delivering unbiased, conflict-free insights that withstand rigorous scrutiny.
Our team has extensive experience analyzing competition issues across multiple industries, having supported landmark antitrust cases globally. We perform sophisticated economic analysis at each stage of the litigation cycle, from initial filing through settlement negotiations, ensuring clients receive optimal analytical support throughout.
Driven by rigorous analysis, our expert work empowers justice—for all—from case strategy to victory. Below are some examples of our track record.
Hammond v Amazon Ltd (1595/7/7/23)
Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro and Charles Lyndon win carriage dispute on landmark Amazon Buy Box consumers class action.
The proposed collective proceedings brought on behalf of more than 50 million UK consumers against Amazon.com and its affiliates allege breaches of statutory duty contrary to section 18 of the Competition Act 1998 and/or Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which prohibit the abuse of a dominant position in a market.
Amazon’s alleged misconduct relates to the algorithm used for the allocation of the ‘Buy Box’ which, the claim alleges, is skewed in favour of product sellers who purchase ancillary services from Amazon.
Consumers claim damages resulting from alleged overcharge on products purchased through the Buy Box since October 2015.
Fideres’s Contribution
Evidence from Fideres and its in-house expert Dr Chris Pike proved decisive in winning the carriage dispute between rival class actions. The Expert report analysed Amazon’s market power within the relevant market and the anticompetitive nature of its conduct in manipulating the algorithm that allocates the Buy Box. It set out a damages analysis and a methodology to quantify the harmful impact of the anticompetitive conduct.
Clients
SNOW v. Align Technology, Inc. (No. 3:2021cv03269)
Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro lead class action against Align Technology over exclusionary conduct in dental scanning and aligner markets.
The claim was brought on behalf of Invisalign and Smile Direct Club customers under Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act.
The Section 2 claim alleged that Align abused its monopoly power by foreclosing rivals in the intraoral scanner market to protect and sustain its dominant position in the clear aligner market. Separately, the Section 1 claim targets anti-competitive agreements between Align and the now-defunct Smile Direct Club, which allegedly restricted competition in both the doctor-directed and direct-to-consumer orthodontics markets.
This US-based class action challenges Align Technology’s conduct in two distinct markets under the Sherman Act.
Fideres’s Contribution
Fideres collaborated with Professor William Vogt to produce several expert and rebuttal reports addressing the alleged anticompetitive conduct. These reports covered market definition, market power, liability, and damages across both claims, supporting plaintiffs at key stages of litigation. Both claims were certified by the court. The Section 1 claim has since been settled, pending court approval. The Section 2 claim is currently under appeal.
Client
Dr Maria Luisa Stasi v Microsoft Corporation (Case No. 1696/7/7/24)
Scott+Scott bring landmark collective action against Microsoft for leveraging practices in cloud computing market.
The proposed collective proceedings, brought on behalf of approximately 59,000 UK businesses that used Windows Server on Listed Providers. The claim alleges breaches of section 18 of the Competition Act 1998 and/or Article 102 of the TFEU.
The claim alleges that Microsoft has abused its dominant position in the Paid Server Operating Systems market—specifically through the licensing of Windows Server—in order to unfairly promote its own Cloud Computing Services platform, Azure.
Claimants seek damages from Microsoft on purchases since 2019.
Fideres’s Contribution
Working with Professor Abe Wickelgren, Fideres provided an expert report that formed the foundation of the case at the pre-certification stage. The report set out the relevant market definition and assessed Microsoft’s dominance within it. It also included a preliminary damages estimate and outlined a rigorous post-disclosure methodology to assess the full extent of harm. This work laid the analytical blueprint for trial at the Competition Appeal Tribunal.
Client
Affinity Credit Union v. Apple Inc. (4:22-cv-04174)
Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro and Sperling & Slater bring a landmark case against Apple Inc., for anticompetitive conduct through its policies regarding Near-field Communication technology on Apple devices.
The proposed collective proceedings on behalf of Affinity Credit Union against Apple Inc. allege that Apple is engaging in anticompetitive conduct by monopolizing the ‘tap and pay’ wallet market on Apple devices by creating artificial barriers around the use of the NFC (near-field communication) technology built into their phones. It is alleged that such behavior forestalled the emergence of competition and allowed Apple to dictate financial terms to banks.
The anticompetitive conduct forced more than 4,000 banks and credit unions that use Apple Pay to pay at least $1 billion in excess fees annually to use the service.
Fideres’s Contribution
Fideres provided economic consulting services to support the testifying expert in the filing the class certification expert report.
Our work focused on market definition, market power analysis and counterfactual price modelling.
The court decision on class certification is currently pending.
Fideres provide insightful and clear expert economic analysis through our expert reports. Our specialist network of affiliated experts includes leading academics and industry leaders.
Competition Economist - Shape the Future of Market Justice
Ready to turn economic analysis into competitive fairness? As a Competition Economist at Fideres, you will be at the forefront of high-stakes antitrust litigation, using specialized economic knowledge and data analysis to expose market manipulation and defend fair competition.
What You Will Do: Work in project teams to analyze new cases and determine the most appropriate tests and approaches for each challenge. You will conduct detailed statistical analysis of market manipulation allegations, writing comprehensive reports that summarize key findings in a simple, succinct manner while staying ahead of market developments to identify new case opportunities.
Your Impact: From case analysis and statistical modeling to developing innovative consulting approaches, you will play a crucial role in protecting competitive markets for our clients. Your work will contribute to fair outcomes in complex antitrust disputes, ensuring markets remain open and competitive.
Ready to make data-driven justice your mission? Join us in creating fairer, more competitive markets.
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