The Federal Trade Commission recently announced revised thresholds (“2024 Thresholds”) applicable to Section 8 of the Clayton Act, 15 U.S.C. § 19. The thresholds are adjusted annually based on changes in gross national...more
This week’s filings by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) against Amazon.com, Inc. (“Amazon”) and the Department of Justice Antitrust Division (“DOJ”) against Agri Stats, Inc. (“Agri Stats”) exemplify the agencies’ broad...more
With one day for Congress to enact appropriations funding federal government operations, the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice, Antitrust Division (the “Agencies”) each issued a contingency plan (the “Plans”)...more
Commissioner Christine Wilson announced her resignation from the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) on February 14, 2023 in a Wall Street Journal Op-Ed. Commissioner Wilson’s very public resignation confirms the deep divide...more
The Federal Trade Commission recently announced revised thresholds (“2023 Thresholds”) applicable to Section 8 of the Clayton Act, 15 U.S.C. § 19. The thresholds are adjusted annually based on changes in gross national...more
After leaving the position vacant for six long months, the Biden Administration announced that it would nominate Jonathan Kanter for the position of Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division at the Department of...more
During an already busy year for antitrust legislative and regulatory proposals, on July 9, 2021, President Biden issued Executive Order 14036: “Promoting Competition in the American Economy.” The Executive Order (“EO”)...more
7/16/2021
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Antitrust Division ,
Banking Sector ,
Biden Administration ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Horizontal Mergers ,
Technology Sector ,
Vertical Mergers
Four days after Congress introduced five antitrust bills with significant levels of bipartisan support, President Biden appointed - and Congress overwhelmingly approved - notable Big Tech critic Lina Khan to be the Chair of...more
2021 has been a busy year for antitrust legislation. On February 4, 2021, Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and four other senators introduced the Competition and Antitrust Law Enforcement Act of 2021 (“Klobuchar Bill”)....more
6/23/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Anticompetitive Behavior ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Big Tech ,
Burden of Proof ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Authority ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Mergers ,
Monopolization ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Rebuttable Presumptions ,
Section 7 ,
Technology Sector ,
The Clayton Act
Joint venture analysis remains an area of confusion in antitrust law. Courts have tended to elevate form over substance, misapply economic principles, and lose focus of the basic purposes of the antitrust laws, i.e.,...more
3/10/2021
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Appeals ,
Certiorari ,
College Athletes ,
Joint Venture ,
NCAA ,
Oral Argument ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Rule-of-Reason Analysis ,
SCOTUS ,
Sherman Act
On February 18, 2021, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a district court’s ground-breaking order requiring divestiture several years after a completed merger. With hindsight, the merger was found to be...more
On February 4, 2021, Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and four other senators introduced S. 225, the Competition and Antitrust Law Enforcement Act of 2021 (the “Bill”). The Bill amends the Clayton Act in three key areas: (1)...more
BCLP’s global Antitrust & Competition team have been tracking the various ways COVID-19 is impacting antitrust enforcement, merger control, state aid and foreign direct investment rules ("FDI") in key jurisdictions around the...more
BCLP’s global Antitrust & Competition team have been tracking the various ways COVID-19 is impacting antitrust enforcement, merger control, state aid and foreign direct investment rules ("FDI") in key jurisdictions around the...more
7/6/2020
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Aid
BCLP’s global Antitrust & Competition team have been tracking the various ways COVID-19 is impacting antitrust enforcement, merger control, state aid and foreign direct investment rules ("FDI") in key jurisdictions around the...more
BCLP’s global Antitrust & Competition team have been tracking the various ways COVID-19 is impacting antitrust enforcement, merger control, state aid and foreign direct investment rules ("FDI") in key jurisdictions around the...more
Competitors, especially healthcare providers, are actively seeking ways to engage in collaborative efforts to help address the COVID-19 outbreak. Appreciating the challenge, necessity, and time pressures of such competitor...more
The Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced that it will give credit to corporations that invest in robust antitrust compliance programs in handling criminal violations of US antitrust...more
On June 25, 2018 the Supreme Court ruled, in a 5-4 decision, that American Express’s antisteering rules do not violate federal antitrust laws. In reaching this conclusion the Court determined that, for two-sided markets like...more
The Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice (“DOJ”) recently announced that it will spearhead an effort to create a new international antitrust enforcement framework. At a June 1st discussion before the...more
In a decision with broad implications for future antitrust litigation, the Third Circuit recently established a framework for determining antitrust standing in circumstances where a direct purchaser plaintiff has alleged the...more
President Trump has announced an additional nominee for the Federal Trade Commission, naming Christine Wilson to fill the remaining Republican seat. Ms. Wilson currently serves as a Senior Vice President at Delta Airlines,...more
The retail industry should have great interest in a case set to be decided the Supreme Court this term, the outcome of which will affect the terms and conditions of credit card acceptance for all merchants.
The Supreme...more
On Monday, October 17, the Supreme Court granted certiorari to review the Second Circuit’s decision in Ohio v. American Express, suggesting that the Court may be ready to shed additional light on the “rule of reason” test...more
On January 17, 2017, the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (“Antitrust Division”) issued an update to its 2008 “Frequently Asked Questions about the Antitrust Division’s Leniency Program and Model Leniency...more