On Wednesday (September 17), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division (Division) (collectively, Agencies) issued their Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Report for fiscal year 2024.
The...more
9/22/2025
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Healthcare ,
Hospitals ,
Merger Reviews ,
Mergers ,
Premerger Notifications
On Wednesday Sept. 10, the Federal Trade Commission (the Commission) announced in a press release that it had issued letters to several large healthcare employers and staffing firms urging them to conduct a comprehensive...more
9/22/2025
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Competition ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Request For Information ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Tuesday made clear its continued commitment to enforcing Section 8 of the Clayton Act when it announced that two health care companies, Sevita Health and Beacon Specialized Living...more
As anticipated, a recently reconstituted Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) announced on Friday that it would no longer defend its previously issued rule (Rule) banning most noncompete agreements. See our prior post...more
9/10/2025
/ Antitrust Violations ,
Competition ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Injunctions ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Request For Information ,
Restrictive Covenants
The U.S. Supreme Court recently handed down its decision in Federal Communications Commission v. Consumers’ Research, a case involving the question whether Congress’s delegation of authority to the FCC to implement provisions...more
7/31/2025
/ Administrative Agencies ,
Administrative Authority ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
FCC ,
Federal Communications Commission v Consumers Research ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Government Agencies ,
Judicial Authority ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Regulatory Agencies ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Rulemaking Process ,
SCOTUS ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Telecommunications ,
Unfair Competition
Recently, the Supreme Court in a case involving President Trump’s without cause firing of the Democratic Commissioners on the Consumer Products Safety Commission stayed an order that had been issued by the U.S. District Court...more
7/28/2025
/ Administrative Agencies ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) ,
Enforcement Authority ,
Executive Authority ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Government Agencies ,
Judicial Authority ,
NLRB ,
Regulatory Authority ,
SCOTUS ,
Supreme Court Justices ,
Trump Administration ,
Trump v Wilcox
A reconstituted Federal Trade Commission (Commission) has asked the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to grant it a 60-day continuance to consider whether to drop the defense of its rule banning noncompetes.
As previously...more
7/21/2025
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Appeals ,
Employment Litigation ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Judicial Authority ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Statutory Authority
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced on July 2 their formation of a False Claims Act Working Group. The announcement and the formation of the Working Group...more
7/9/2025
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Medicaid ,
Medical Devices ,
Medicare ,
Trump Administration
The Supreme Court last week granted the stay requested by the Government enjoining the enforcement of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia’s orders involving President Trump’s firing of members of the National...more
5/27/2025
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Article II ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Executive Authority ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Government Agencies ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Injunctions ,
Merits Systems Protection Board ,
NLRB ,
Quasi-Judicial Process ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Removal For-Cause ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Trump Administration ,
Trump v Wilcox
With May having begun, we have entered the zone in which the Supreme Court will be announcing decisions in the most important cases of this term.
Among them is Federal Communications Commission v. Consumers’ Research, a...more
5/9/2025
/ Certiorari ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
FCC ,
Federal Communications Commission v Consumers Research ,
Government Agencies ,
Oral Argument ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Schools Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition v Consumers Research ,
SCOTUS ,
Separation of Powers ,
Statutory Authority ,
Telecommunications Act ,
USAC
President Trump issued a Memorandum on April 6 directing the heads of all executive departments and agencies to identify on a fast-track basis (60 days) certain categories of “unlawful and potentially unlawful” regulations...more
4/24/2025
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Chevron Deference ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Executive Orders ,
Healthcare ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
Presidential Memorandum ,
Regulatory Agencies ,
Regulatory Reform ,
SCOTUS ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Trump Administration
On April 9, President Trump issued an Executive Order instructing agency heads, in consultation with the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Attorney General, to complete a review of all regulations subject...more
On March 27, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it was launching an Anticompetitive Regulations Task Force, whose stated purpose is to advocate for the elimination of anticompetitive state and federal laws...more
On Feb. 26, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Andrew Ferguson issued a “Directive Regarding Labor Markets Task Force” pursuant to which a Joint Labor Task Force is being organized consisting of the Directors of the...more
Back in late January, U.S. District Court Judge Xavier Rodriguez in the Western District of Texas granted summary judgment to Loredo Medical Center (LMC) and a locally-based interventional cardiology group (LMC Cardiology...more
2/24/2025
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Evidence ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Monopolization ,
Section 2 ,
Sherman Act ,
Summary Judgment
On Feb. 18, in U.S. v. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, the First Circuit Court of Appeals joined the Sixth Circuit and the Eighth Circuit in holding that, for purposes of establishing that a claim for payment of items or services...more
2/21/2025
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Appeals ,
Appellate Courts ,
Causation ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Government Agencies ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Medicare ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Qui Tam ,
Regeneron ,
Summary Judgment ,
Whistleblowers
In March 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) (collectively, Agencies) issued a request for information (RFI) seeking public comment...more
1/27/2025
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Hospitals ,
Mergers ,
Physicians ,
Private Equity ,
Transparency
We previously reported on the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) lawsuit against U.S. Anesthesia Partners (USAP) and the private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe (Welsh Carson). In the lawsuit, the FTC alleges that...more
1/23/2025
/ Acquisitions ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Consent Order ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Healthcare ,
Hospitals ,
Mergers ,
Portfolio Companies ,
Private Equity ,
Private Equity Firms ,
Unfair Competition
This white paper discusses FCC v. Consumers’ Research, a case now set for consideration by the U.S. Supreme Court, along with a review and analysis of the major impact it may have on how and when Congress may permissibly...more
1/9/2025
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Certiorari ,
Chevron Deference ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
FCC ,
Government Agencies ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Authority ,
SCOTUS ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Telecommunications
On Jan. 2, 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) filed its opening brief with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in Ryan LLC et.al. v. Federal Trade Commission, the case in which the plaintiffs are...more
The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission (Agencies) announced on Dec. 11, 2024, that they have withdrawn the Antitrust Guidelines for Collaborations Among Competitors (Guidelines) issued in...more
12/16/2024
/ Collaboration ,
Competition ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Healthcare ,
Horizontal Merger Guidelines ,
Research and Development ,
Safe Harbors ,
SCOTUS ,
Sherman Act ,
Withdrawal
On Nov. 5, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed its opening brief in its pending appeal in Properties of the Villages, Inc. v. FTC,No. 24–13102 (M.D. Florida). As previously reported, on Aug. 14, Judge Timothy Corrigan...more
This white paper details the significant differences between the Federal Trade Commission’s Proposed Rule and recently issued Final Rule with respect to various premerger reporting requirements under the Hart-Scott-Rodino...more
10/25/2024
/ Competition ,
Contract Drafting ,
Corporate Officers ,
Corporate Sales Transactions ,
Directors ,
Documentation ,
Employee Retention ,
Federal Register ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Geolocation ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Lead Supervisory Authority ,
Letters of Intent ,
Mergers ,
Minority Shareholders ,
Premerger Notifications ,
Second Requests ,
Suppliers ,
Waiting Periods
In June 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (Commission) proposed major changes to its premerger notification rules that implement the Hart-Scot-Rodino Act and impact a large swath of merger and acquisition transactions each...more
On Oct. 18, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) expectedly filed a notice of appeal to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in Ryan LLC et.al. v. Federal Trade Commission. As has been previously reported, Judge Ada M. Brown in...more