Mergers and acquisitions involving companies that conduct business with the federal government present a unique set of challenges. Several statutes and regulations are implicated in such corporate transactions, whether the...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced the annual revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act (HSR Act) thresholds and HSR filing fees, which will become effective on March 6, 2024. The revised...more
2/6/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Filing Fees ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Mergers ,
Pre-Merger Filing Requirements ,
Premerger Notifications ,
Size of Persons Test ,
Size of Transaction Test ,
Threshold Requirements
On December 18, 2023, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued the final version of new merger review guidelines (Merger Guidelines), five months after the agencies published a draft for...more
1/3/2024
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Comment Period ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Horizontal Merger Guidelines ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Vertical Mergers
On July 19, 2023, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a draft version of new Merger Guidelines (Merger Guidelines), which would replace the 2010 Horizontal Merger Guidelines and the...more
On June 27, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), in concurrence with the Antitrust Division of the US Department of Justice (DOJ), announced a proposal to drastically overhaul the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) premerger...more
7/7/2023
/ Antitrust Division ,
Biden Administration ,
De Minimus Doctrine ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Filing Requirements ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Mergers ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Non-Voting Shares ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Premerger Notifications ,
Public Comment ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Threshold Requirements
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced the annual revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act (HSR Act) thresholds, which will become effective on Monday, February 27, 2023. The revised thresholds...more
On December 29, 2022, President Biden signed into law The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 (also known as The Omnibus Appropriations Bill), which includes the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act. The Merger Filing Fee...more
The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has announced the annual revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act (“HSR Act”) thresholds, which will become effective on February 23, 2022. The revised thresholds...more
On June 30, 2020, the Department of Justice and a split Federal Trade Commission released the final version of their new Vertical Merger Guidelines, which outline how the federal antitrust agencies evaluate the competitive...more
7/9/2020
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Guidance ,
Horizontal Mergers ,
Manufacturers ,
Mergers ,
Retailers ,
Supply Chain ,
Transparency ,
Vertical Mergers
In an unprecedented move further expanding its ongoing investigation of large technology companies, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has ordered Amazon.com, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft and Google to provide details about...more
The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has announced the annual revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act (“HSR Act”) thresholds, which will become effective on February 27, 2020. The revised thresholds will...more
1/29/2020
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Filing Fees ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Mergers ,
Pre-Merger Filing Requirements ,
Premerger Notifications ,
Size of Persons Test ,
Size of Transaction Test ,
Threshold Requirements
On January 10, 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission released draft Vertical Merger Guidelines for public comment. The new guidelines, which will replace the outdated 1984 Non-Horizontal Merger...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently affirmed a district court’s issuance of a preliminary injunction to block the proposed merger of two North Dakota healthcare providers, Sanford Health/Sanford Bismarck...more
The Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") has announced the annual revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act ("HSR Act") thresholds, which will become effective on April 3, 2019. The revised thresholds will...more
The past couple of years have seen an increase in large “vertical” mergers, combinations of businesses operating within the same industry but at different levels of the supply chain. Some of the most high profile include...more
2/1/2019
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Private Equity ,
Supply Chain ,
Vertical Mergers
The past month has seen interesting developments in the antitrust M&A arena, including the first ever successful private antitrust merger challenge resulting in a divestiture order, and the announcement by the Department of...more
On June 12, 2018, after a six-week trial, U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon denied the U.S. Department of Justice’s request to block AT&T Inc.’s $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner Inc., one of the most high-profile...more
The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has announced the annual revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act (“HSR Act”) thresholds, which will become effective on February 28, 2018. The revised thresholds will...more
1/31/2018
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Filing Fees ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Interlocking Directorate ,
Mergers ,
Premerger Notifications ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Size of Transaction Test ,
The Clayton Act ,
Threshold Requirements
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced the annual revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act (HSR Act) thresholds, which will become effective on February 27, 2017. The revised thresholds will...more
On July 12, 2016, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced that investment firm ValueAct Capital (“ValueAct”) agreed to pay a record $11 million fine to settle charges that it and its affiliates violated the reporting and...more
On April 22, 2014, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed a decision of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) finding that the merger of two hospital systems in Ohio violated the antitrust laws. ProMedica...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced the annual revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act (HSR Act) thresholds, which will become effective on February 24, 2014. The revised thresholds will...more