This article is part of a monthly column that considers the significance of recent Federal Trade Commission antitrust announcements. In this installment, we discuss what to expect from the Trump administration's approach to...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced increases to the notification thresholds and premerger filing fees under the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Antitrust Improvements Act, which requires premerger notification of...more
These announcements come alongside the impending overhaul of the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act filing process scheduled to take effect on February 10, 2025—subject to potential delay based on President Trump’s January 20, 2025...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) (collectively, the U.S. Antitrust Agencies) have recently reinvigorated antitrust enforcement against company “interlocks”—i.e., when a director or...more
On January 10, 2025, the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission filed a statement of interest in Musk v. Altman, signaling a late push by the government to expand the scope of liability for interlocking...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced its annual adjustments to (1) the pre-merger notification thresholds under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (the HSR Act), (2) the HSR Act filing...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced on January 10, 2025, increased reporting thresholds for transactions. Annually, the FTC reviews and adjusts the premerger notification reporting thresholds for reporting...more
The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has revised the thresholds that govern pre-merger notification requirements under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended (“HSR Act”), and Section 8 of the...more
On October 10, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) (the Antitrust Agencies) finalized and released significant updates to the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) premerger notification form. The updates are...more
Democratic Commissioners Swung for the Fences, but FTC Settles for Unanimous Revisions, Still Increasing Burden on Filers - On October 10, 2024, all five Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) Commissioners, with concurrence...more
On October 10, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), with the concurrence of the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”), adopted final rules overhauling the premerger notification form and filing...more
The identification, investigation and removal of persons who serve as directors or officers of two competing companies (i.e., “horizontal interlocks”) is a significant component of the Biden Administration’s antitrust...more
Below is a summary of some of the most important points made by antitrust enforcers who participated in panels at the ABA Antitrust Section’s annual Spring Meeting....more
On June 27, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) in collaboration with the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced a proposal to overhaul the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act premerger notification program. If adopted, the...more
The size-of-transaction threshold under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act will increase to $119.5 million, and the largest filing fee will increase to $2.335 million. As a result of the increase in the U.S. Gross National Product...more
On January 22, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) published its adjusted reporting thresholds under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended (HSR Act). The FTC revises the HSR Act thresholds...more
Key Points - The HSR Act requires parties that meet certain transaction size and other tests to file premerger notification forms for mergers and other transactions with both the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and...more
In January 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) made three important announcements for M&A practitioners....more
The Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act requires parties to transactions that meet certain thresholds to notify the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and observe a waiting period prior to closing unless...more
The annual revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act reporting thresholds have arrived. The new thresholds for notification will apply to all transactions that close on or after the effective date of the notice, which is...more
For companies in the energy and chemical sectors, the potential for antitrust scrutiny is an ever-present concern. The next round of enforcement inquiries is never further away than the next jump in commodity prices or the...more
Participants in the renewable energy industry should be aware of antitrust and competition rules because renewable energy is no longer a nascent field. Europe generated almost 40% of its electricity from renewable sources in...more
Companies should take a proactive approach as US antitrust agencies continue to enforce Section 8 of the Clayton Act. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the US Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust Division (the...more
On August 16, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced an agreement with natural gas producer EQT Corporation (EQT) and private equity firm Quantum Energy Partners (Quantum) to resolve concerns stemming from alleged...more