News & Analysis as of September 21, 2024

Hiring & Firing › Antitrust Division

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Balancing Act: Navigating Nuances in Labor Market Enforcement

WilmerHale on 7/8/2024

In recent years, the Department of Justice Antitrust Division (“DOJ”) and the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) have significantly ramped up enforcement efforts in labor markets. This article delves into two key enforcement...more

[Webinar] Preparing for the Future of Health Care Antitrust Scrutiny - June 11th, 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm PST

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP on 5/21/2024

Now, more than ever, health care organizations are facing complex antitrust issues as their mergers/acquisitions, hiring, contracting and private funding are being scrutinized by the federal and state governments. Proper...more

Fresh Off the Grill: No-Poach Agreements May Lead to Per Se Antitrust Liability, Says 7th Circuit

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP on 9/27/2023

Introduction - No-poach agreements, wherein companies agree not to solicit or hire employees away from a competitor, have been targeted by the White House, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Antitrust Division....more

US Antitrust Agencies Release Revised Draft Merger Guidelines

Goodwin on 7/21/2023

On July 19, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ) (each an Agency, and collectively, the Agencies) released a long-awaited draft version of revised Merger...more

Back to the Future: Antitrust Agencies Announce New Draft Merger Guidelines

BCLP on 7/21/2023

On July 19, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice, Antitrust Division (together, the “Agencies”) announced new draft Merger Guidelines (“Draft Guidelines”), which detail the analysis the Agencies will...more

Federal Antitrust Regulators Announce Proposed New Merger Guidelines

Williams Mullen on 7/21/2023

On July 18, 2023, the DOJ Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission released new Guidelines detailing the principles that they intend to apply when reviewing mergers. The Guidelines, issued in draft form for public...more

DOJ Continues to Prioritize No-Poach Cases

Jenner & Block on 5/16/2023

In recent years, the U.S. Department of Justice has tried three criminal no-poach cases to a jury, and in all three the defendants were acquitted. But expect the crackdown on the use of allegedly illegal no-poach agreements...more

DOJ Suffers Rare Acquittal From the Bench in Fourth Criminal No-Poach Loss

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP on 5/8/2023

In the latest setback in the Department Justice Antitrust Division’s (DOJ) attempts to prosecute “no-poach” agreements criminally, a federal judge acquitted from the bench all six defendant employees of aerospace engineering...more

The DOJ Gets the Green Light in its Latest No-Poach Criminal Prosecution

Foley Hoag LLP - White Collar Law &... on 12/23/2022

It has been a tumultuous year for the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and its recent no-poach criminal prosecution strategy. No-poach agreements, which are arrangements between companies that place restrictions on the hiring...more

FTC Reaches Agreement with NLRB to Further Protect Labor Markets

Epstein Becker & Green on 8/11/2022

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice have prioritized the protection of labor markets. From scrutinizing “no-poach” agreements and restrictive covenants to analyzing the impact of mergers and...more

Antitrust Challenge to McDonald’s No-Poach Restriction Evaluated Under the Rule of Reason

Perkins Coie on 7/6/2022

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

[Webinar] Consequences of No-Poach Agreements: Civil and Criminal - May 24th, 10:00 am - 11:00 am PT

CDF Labor Law LLP on 5/11/2022

The Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ) has stepped up enforcement over no-poach/no-hire agreements under Federal antitrust laws. The DOJ recently tried two criminal cases against individual officers of...more

[Webinar] Trial Team Reflections on Win in First-Ever Criminal No-Poach Case: DOJ May Have Lost, But The Game Is Not Over - May...

McDermott Will & Emery on 4/22/2022

In July 2021, the US Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Antitrust Division brought its first-ever criminal no-poach market allocation case. The Antitrust Division indicted DaVita, Inc. and its former CEO Kent Thiry on three counts...more

DOJ Faces Two Strikeouts in First Health Care Wage-Fixing and “No Poach” Prosecutions

Polsinelli on 4/21/2022

On April 14, 2022, a Texas jury returned five not-guilty verdicts on six charges considered in the first federal criminal wage-fixing prosecution. A day later, on April 15, 2022, a Colorado federal jury entirely acquitted...more

First DOJ Criminal Wage-Fixing and No-Poach Trials End in Acquittals

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati on 4/19/2022

In 2016, the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division (DOJ) announced that it would criminally prosecute no-poach and wage-fixing agreements for the first time. Indeed, the DOJ has backed this up by bringing a number of...more

OFCCP Week In Review: March 2022 #2

DirectEmployers Association on 3/14/2022

The DE OFCCP Week in Review (WIR) is a simple, fast and direct summary of relevant happenings in the OFCCP regulatory environment, authored by experts John C. Fox, Candee Chambers and Jennifer Polcer. In today’s edition, they...more

DOJ's Aggressive Pursuit of 'No Poachers'

Vinson & Elkins LLP on 3/7/2022

On January 28, 2022, the United States District Court for the District of Colorado declined to dismiss a criminal antitrust indictment alleging a dialysis operator, DaVita Inc. (“DaVita”), and its former CEO colluded with...more

Antitrust Division Indicts Four Individuals for Wage Fixing in Labor Markets (Part III of III)

The Volkov Law Group on 2/3/2022

Criminal antitrust is burning a path in prosecuting illegal wage-fixing agreements in labor markets. The Justice Department warned companies over five years ago and now DOJ is executing on its warning. Over the last two...more

[Podcast] The Emerging New Era for Noncompetes and Trade Secrets: Nationalizing Competitiveness and Noncompete Law: Criminal...

BakerHostetler on 1/27/2022

Nationalizing Competitiveness and Noncompete Law: Criminal Antitrust and Federal Efforts to Curtail No-Poach and Noncompete Agreements is part five of BakerHostetler's six-part series, "The Emerging New Era for Noncompetes...more

Prominent Services Contractors Ensnared in No-Poach Class Action

Vinson & Elkins LLP on 9/23/2021

For many federal government contractors, their skilled and experienced workforce may be their most valuable asset. A recent “ice breaker” settlement of a class action lawsuit, however, demonstrates the wrong way to protect...more

DOJ Antitrust’s Ongoing Criminal Investigation of Labor Market Collusion in Health Care Industry Nets DaVita and Former CEO

The Volkov Law Group on 7/19/2021

The health care industry is taking it on the chin these days. As DOJ increases False Claims Act prosecutions, the primary targets are pharmaceutical, medical device and health care providers. ...more

Chamber of Commerce Questions the Criminality of Employee No-Poach Agreements

Ballard Spahr LLP on 4/12/2021

Whether employee no-poach agreements are illegal per se is being tested in a criminal case, U.S. v. Surgical Care Affiliates LLC et al., drawing the attention of many interested parties, including the United States Chamber of...more

DOJ’s First Criminal Charges for Wage-Fixing and No-Poach Labor Agreements: 6 Key Takeaways

Latham & Watkins LLP on 2/19/2021

With increased scrutiny of anticompetitive conduct in labor markets, companies need to adopt proactive compliance efforts to avoid prosecution. The US Department of Justice’s (DOJ’s) Antitrust Division recently announced...more

DOJ Antitrust Division Provides Additional Insight on Its Analysis of No-Poach Agreements that May Be Subject to Criminal...

K&L Gates LLP on 3/20/2019

Since 2016, the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division (“DOJ” or “Division”) has increased its enforcement focus on agreements between labor market competitors not to hire each other’s employees — also known as...more

US DOJ Adds Complexity to Enforcement of “No-Poach” Agreements under Antitrust Law

McDermott Will & Emery on 3/14/2019

On Thursday, March 7, the Antitrust Division intervened in three antitrust class actions to urge the court that no-poach agreements between vertically related firms, such as between franchisor and franchisee, should be...more

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Hiring & Firing › Antitrust Division

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