UNITED STATES -
- Agencies Revisiting Consummated Mergers -
What’s old is new again, as agencies are increasingly scrutinizing consummated mergers from years past. In May 2024, the US Department of Justice (DOJ), Antitrust...more
7/29/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Competition ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Energy Sector ,
EU ,
EUMR ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Mergers ,
Oil & Gas ,
Popular ,
Request For Information ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
UNITED STATES -
New Merger Guidelines Deployed -
The 2023 Merger Guidelines are a non-binding statement that provides clarity on aspects of federal agencies’ deliberations and enforcement practices undertaken in...more
5/3/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Emerging Technologies ,
EU ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Foreign Investment ,
Healthcare ,
Horizontal Merger Guidelines ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Private Equity ,
UK ,
Vertical Mergers
IN THIS FEBRUARY 2024 ISSUE -
UNITED STATES -
New Merger Guidelines Released -
The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and US Department of Justice Antitrust Division (DOJ) issued their updated Merger Guidelines on...more
2/14/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
EUMR ,
European Commission ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Mergers ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) ,
Vertical Mergers
The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and US Department of Justice Antitrust Division (DOJ) issued their updated Merger Guidelines on December 18, 2023.
These guidelines represent a significantly more...more
12/22/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Draft Guidance ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Horizontal Merger Guidelines ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Vertical Mergers
UNITED STATES -
Proposed Merger Guidelines Outline Fundamental Change of Approach to Merger Investigation and Enforcement -
On July 19, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the US Department of Justice (DOJ)...more
10/27/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Competition ,
Enforcement ,
EU ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Investigations ,
Merger Agreements ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
New Guidance ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
APRIL – JUNE 2023: KEY THEMES AND TAKEAWAYS -
UNITED STATES -
• Federal Trade Commission Unveils Proposal Detailing Significant Changes to Hart-Scott-Rodino Act Merger Notifications On June 27, 2023, the Federal Trade...more
7/31/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
EU ,
FCC ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Premerger Notifications
UNITED STATES -
Wilson Resigns as FTC Commissioner -
On February 14, the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC’s) lone Republican commissioner, Christine Wilson, announced that she was resigning. Wilson explained her decision...more
4/21/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
American Bar Association (ABA) ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
EU ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Foreign Subsidies ,
Healthcare ,
Horizontal Mergers ,
Investigations ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Private Equity ,
Settlement Agreements ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
APRIL – JUNE 2022: KEY THEMES AND TAKEAWAYS -
UNITED STATES -
• An Overview of Agency Merger Challenges from January 2021 through June 2022 Parties continue to be cautious in litigating challenged transactions. Since...more
9/26/2022
/ Acquisitions ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Foreign Subsidies ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Healthcare ,
Investment ,
Mergers ,
National Security ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Private Equity ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
WHAT HAPPENED -
During a conference last week, Ryan Danks, Director of Civil Enforcement at the US Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division (DOJ), suggested that merging parties—not the antitrust enforcement...more
JANUARY – MARCH 2022: HIGHLIGHTS -
UNITED STATES -
• The US antitrust agencies continue with their aggressive merger enforcement posture. The agencies challenged four transactions this quarter, including multiple...more
5/6/2022
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Investigations ,
Merger Controls ,
Merger Remedies ,
Mergers ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
OCTOBER – DECEMBER 2021:
HIGHLIGHTS UNITED STATES -
• Both antitrust agencies have now filled senior leadership positions, although the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) awaits the appointment of a fifth commissioner....more
APRIL – JUNE 2021: HIGHLIGHTS -
UNITED STATES -
- The premerger notification landscape continues to shift as filings reach another record high, and the US Congress contemplates increases to filing fees and New York...more
8/6/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Biden Administration ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Emerging Technology Companies ,
Enforcement ,
EU ,
EUMR ,
European Merger Control Regulation ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Filing Fees ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Mergers ,
Pre-Merger Filing Requirements ,
Proposed Regulation ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
JANUARY – MARCH 2021: HIGHLIGHTS -
UNITED STATES -
- As the United States rounds the corner toward getting the COVID-19 epidemic under control within its borders, the US antitrust enforcers have seen a major spike in...more
5/4/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Competition ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
EU ,
European Merger Control Regulation ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Healthcare ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Premerger Notifications ,
Technology ,
UK
OCTOBER - DECEMBER 2020 UPDATE -
UNITED STATES -
Despite initial obstacles because of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 rounded out to be the busiest year for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) enforcement in the United States...more
2/8/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Markets Strategy ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Investigations ,
Mergers ,
Premerger Notifications ,
Proposed Rules ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
JULY - SEPTEMBER 2020 UPDATE -
UNITED STATES-
Mergers and acquisitions in the United States appear to be bouncing back after a muted start to the year due to COVID-19. Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) filings in Q3 2020 were up...more
10/26/2020
/ Acquisitions ,
Competition Authorities ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
EU Merger Directive ,
European Commission ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Filing Requirements ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Mergers ,
Premerger Notifications ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
What Happened:
- The FTC and DOJ proposed new Hart–Scott–Rodino (HSR) rules that, if issued in final form, will significantly change HSR practice for Private Equity (PE) companies.
- The Proposed Rules are subject to...more
United States -
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) faced new issues this quarter with the unprecedented challenges brought about by the COVID-19 global pandemic. In March, the agencies made...more
The US antitrust regulators continue to challenge consummated transactions. On January 3, 2020, the FTC filed an administrative complaint against Axon Enterprise, Inc., challenging its consummated acquisition of VieVu, a...more
1/20/2020
/ Acquisitions ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Mergers ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements
Three recent antitrust merger reviews involving nascent competition demonstrate enforcers are paying close attention to acquisitions by industry leaders of emerging, but early-stage competitors. The US antitrust agencies have...more
The US agencies continue to be aggressive and have blocked transactions or required significant remedies during the second quarter. The agencies cleared three mergers where divestitures were required. In the face of Federal...more
8/28/2019
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
French Competition Authority ,
Institutional Investors ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Sherman Act
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) recently sued former joint venture partners because they allegedly coordinated their competitive activities beyond the legitimate scope of their venture. This case illustrates several...more
On January 28, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it had accepted a proposed settlement with office supply distributors Staples and Essendant in connection with Staples’ proposed $482.7 million acquisition...more
Yesterday, September 24, 2018, Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim announced a series of reforms with the express goal to resolve most merger investigations within six months of filing. The reforms seek to place the...more
The challenges that the government faces in litigating vertical mergers was illustrated in the DOJ’s recent loss in its challenge of AT&T’s proposed acquisition of Time Warner. The result provides guidance for how companies...more
6/20/2018
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
AT&T ,
Bargaining Power ,
Competition ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Mergers ,
Telecommunications ,
Time Warner ,
Vertical Mergers
United States: January – March 2018 Update -
One year into the Trump administration, the US antitrust agencies are finally starting to implement their enforcement policies. Most notably, trial began in the US Department of...more