The staff of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Bureau of Competition issued a statement on June 15, 2023, sternly criticizing the use of confidentiality and nondisclosure agreements that “impede” the FTC’s ability to conduct...more
7/11/2023
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Competition ,
Competition Authorities ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employees ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Interviews ,
NLRB ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Antitrust Division, recently withdrew three sets of guidelines that had been relied upon heavily by the healthcare industry: the 1993 Antitrust Enforcement Policy Statements Issued for...more
2/8/2023
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Healthcare ,
Investigations ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Policy Statement ,
Unfair Competition
Antitrust compliance programs that are tailored to a company’s culture, line of business, and competitive conditions have long been worth their weight in gold. But as 2022 draws to a close, a looming economic slowdown and an...more
11/16/2022
/ Antitrust Violations ,
Appeals ,
Class Action ,
Collusion ,
Compliance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Price-Fixing ,
Settlement ,
Sherman Act ,
The Clayton Act ,
Wage-Fixing
A federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois has held that an antitrust challenge to a “hiring restriction [that] prevented” plaintiff employees “from taking a better-paying position with a...more
7/6/2022
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fast-Food Industry ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchises ,
Hiring & Firing ,
No-Poaching
A proposed healthcare acquisition was abandoned following the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC or the Commission) unanimous vote to oppose the transaction. In the face of 5-0 FTC opposition, New Jersey providers RWJBarnabas...more
The U.S. Department of Justice, Antitrust Division (Antitrust Division) announced several significant updates to its Leniency Policy on April 4, 2022. Under that policy, the first company or individual to report a criminal...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on June 7, 2021, that a North Carolina engineering firm agreed to pay a $7 million fine and $1.5 million in restitution after pleading guilty to engaging in bid rigging and fraud...more
6/14/2021
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Best Practices ,
Bid Rigging ,
Biden Administration ,
Bids ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
FBI ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fraudulent Procurement ,
Procurement Collusion Strike Force ,
Procurement Guidelines
The Antitrust Division (Division) of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced an update to its Civil Investigative Demand (CID) forms and its investigative deposition process on September 10. When conducting civil...more
9/15/2020
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Civil Investigation Demand ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Depositions ,
Documentation ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Information Reports ,
Leniency Guidelines ,
Risk Factors ,
Testimony ,
Updated Forms
The economic damage attendant to COVID-19 has already resulted in a substantial increase in bankruptcies. Acquisitions through U.S. bankruptcy courts are not exempt from challenge by government antitrust enforcers or private...more
COVID-19 has financially stressed the U.S. healthcare system in several ways. In many cities, hospitals have needed to add healthcare capacity (especially ICU beds) to serve rapidly increasing numbers of COVID-19 patients. At...more
DOJ Attorney’s House Testimony: Industry “Unpopular” With Attorney General Barr -
The federal government does not generally enforce the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) in states that have legalized cannabis, unless...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) recently prevailed in its challenge of Novelis’ proposed merger with Aleris Corporation. The challenge involved a first-of-its kind use of arbitration under the Administrative Dispute...more
Last Friday, the White House declared a national state of emergency amid concerns of the global spread of the coronavirus. Nearly every state and numerous cities have followed suit by issuing declarations triggering emergency...more
When the DOJ is deciding whether to charge a company with a criminal antitrust violation, or agreeing to a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA), the effectiveness of a company’s antitrust compliance program is only one...more
3/5/2020
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Code of Conduct ,
Competition ,
Compliance ,
Criminal Antitrust Litigation ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Leniency Guidelines ,
Sandoz
Schick, the shaving product company, recently announced it was abandoning its proposed $1.4 billion acquisition of rival startup Harry’s Razors. The announcement followed the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) threat to...more
2/28/2020
/ Acquisitions ,
Blocked Mergers ,
Competition ,
Contract Terms ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Divestiture ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Merger Agreements ,
Merger Reviews ,
Mergers ,
Reasonable Best Efforts
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a new policy on July 11, 2019, designed to incentivize the development and implementation of corporate antitrust compliance programs.
In remarks made at the New York...more
There are increasing calls for the antitrust enforcement agencies to review the effects of past acquisitions in the tech sector. Senator Elizabeth Warren has pledged to appoint enforcers committed to reversing such mergers....more
4/26/2019
/ Anticompetitive Behavior ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Emerging Technology Companies ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Agency Taskforce ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hospital Mergers ,
Mergers ,
Technology Sector
The American Bar Association’s 67th Antitrust Law spring meeting held earlier this month featured several sessions addressing the efforts of federal and state antitrust enforcement agencies, including a number of discussions...more
4/10/2019
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Cartwright Act ,
Competition ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Guidance ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Illinois Brick ,
Mergers ,
Ohio v American Express ,
Price-Fixing ,
Sherman Act ,
State Sovereignty ,
Vertical Mergers
From 2010 to 2015, the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice filed criminal charges against more than 120 corporations and more than 350 individuals, and collected fines and penalties of more than $8 billion....more
3/26/2019
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Cartels ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FBI ,
Search Warrant ,
White Collar Crimes
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Attorney General of North Carolina announced a settlement last week in their civil antitrust case against Atrium Health, the largest hospital system in the state of North Carolina....more
The Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) last week announced that it was seeking public comments on the continued viability of the Paramount Consent Decrees, which have regulated how motion pictures are...more
8/10/2018
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Consent Decrees ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Film Industry ,
Licensing Rights ,
Movie Theaters ,
Movies ,
Paramount Pictures ,
Public Comment
Following a six-week trial, federal Judge Richard Leon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia recently approved AT&T’s 85-billion-dollar acquisition of Time Warner Inc. AT&T Inc. (along with its subsidiary,...more
The Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) hosted a roundtable discussion on criminal antitrust compliance programs recently. Lawyers from corporate law departments and law firms, as well as from foreign...more
The Federal Trade Commission announced on February 12, 2018, that it has filed an administrative complaint seeking injunctive relief against three large dental supply companies, alleging that they violated the antitrust laws...more
On October 12, 2017, President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order designed to promote choice and competition in healthcare markets. The order was reported as a first step in the administration’s effort to undermine the...more