On March 5, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division (DOJ), and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) jointly issued a Request for Information on Consolidation in Health Care...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice Antitrust Division (DOJ) on December 21, 2023, released the FY 2022 HSR Annual Report (the Report). The Report covers the period October 1, 2021, through...more
On July 19, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division (DOJ) (collectively, the Agencies) released the long-anticipated updated draft Merger Guidelines1 (the Guidelines) for a...more
Since the mid-1990s, human resource (HR) professionals (and those advising them) have relied on the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) “antitrust safety zone” articulated in Statement 6 of the...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced new, higher premerger notification thresholds. The new minimum size-of-transaction threshold will be $111.4 million.
The FTC simultaneously announced implementation of the...more
Updated as of January 31, 2023-
The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) proposed a rule (the “Proposed Rule”) that would prohibit companies from imposing post-employment noncompete agreements. If enacted, the Proposed Rule...more
1/31/2023
/ Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employment Contract ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Highly Compensated Employees ,
Joe Biden ,
No-Poaching ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Wage-Fixing
On January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) proposed a rule (the “Proposed Rule”) that would prohibit companies from imposing post-employment noncompete agreements. If enacted, the Proposed Rule would bar...more
Companies doing business in or with Russia or Russian companies should carefully assess the impact of the new sanctions on their operations and activities and review their compliance procedures. This includes ensuring that...more
On January 18, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ, and together with the FTC, Antitrust Agencies) announced that they are “seek[ing] public comment on how the...more
The Federal Trade Commission has announced new, nearly 10 percent higher premerger notification thresholds that will take effect February 23, 2022, and thus apply to transactions closing on or after that date. The new minimum...more
A recent court decision serves as an important reminder that attorney-client privilege may not apply to communications between an executive and a company’s counsel during the course of an investigation unless individual...more
A federal judge recently dismissed the Federal Trade Commission's challenge of Illumina Inc.'s acquisition of Grail Inc., a cancer-screening firm started and spun off years earlier by Illumina itself.
A victory for the...more
The litigation filed last fall challenging the legitimacy of the United States Trade Representative’s (USTR) decision to issue the List 3 and List 4 China 301 tariffs is moving forward, but companies paying these duties may...more
The Federal Trade Commission has announced new, slightly lower premerger notification thresholds that will take effect March 4, 2021, and thus apply to transactions closing on or after that date. The new minimum...more
Within the past month, the Department of Justice Antitrust Division (the Division), in two separate matters, indicted a former owner of a health care staffing company for participating in a conspiracy to fix prices by...more
In the final weeks of 2020, opportunity knocked for Sazerac Company, Inc (Sazerac), Precept Brands LLC (Precept), and Vie-Del Company (Vie-Del) and each opened the door.
After a 20-month investigation that found E. & J....more
No matter how novel a scheme about “coordinating” with competitors to instill “discipline” in the market may seem, odds are that the antitrust enforcers have seen it before and eventually will prosecute it.
Take the recent...more
12/2/2020
/ Antitrust Division ,
Bid Rigging ,
Bids ,
Bumble Bee Foods ,
Competitive Bidding ,
Confessions ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Leniency Programs ,
Price-Fixing ,
Whistleblowers
Last week, the Antitrust Division (Division) of the U.S. Department of Justice (Department or DOJ) issued a memorandum providing further guidance to Division attorneys and the public on the use of arbitration in civil...more
If you caught our last two client alerts–Hey Fintech, the Antitrust Division Is Watching You! and Hey Fintech: Watch What You Say, and Be Mindful of What Others Say on Your Behalf–then you know that the Antitrust Division has...more
What You Need To Know:
•No matter what industry you are in, what others say on your behalf can be ripe targets for antitrust enforcers.
•Consultants and bankers create “sales materials” with the same mindset as real...more
What You Need To Know:
•The Antitrust Division is training its sights on fintech deals in which incumbents buy up “nascent competitors.”
•If you’re on the buy-side considering a “nascent competitor” transaction, early...more
The Federal Trade Commission, by a 3-2 vote along party lines, has proposed for public comment two major changes to its Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act premerger notification rules. These changes would exempt from HSR filing some...more
On May 14, 2020, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the Department of State, and the U.S. Coast Guard issued a Sanctions Advisory for the Maritime Industry, Energy and Metals...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has reminded us that the “failing firm defense” is much harder to pull off than might be imagined, and that the antitrust agencies will closely analyze all “failing company” claims even...more
On May 14, 2020, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the Department of State, and the U.S. Coast Guard issued a Sanctions Advisory for the Maritime Industry, Energy and Metals...more
5/18/2020
/ Coast Guard ,
Due Diligence ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Maritime Transport ,
North Korea ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Shipping ,
Supply Chain ,
Syria ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
US Department of State