The judgment rejects the European Commission’s expansive re-interpretation of the European Union Merger Regulation, stressing the need for legal certainty in line with the EU legislature’s intent....more
On 3 September 2024, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that the European Commission (Commission) cannot encourage or accept referrals for below-threshold deals from national competition authorities if those...more
In our previous Bennett Jones insight, we described several upcoming (and far-reaching) amendments to the Competition Act (the Act) introduced by the Government of Canada in 2023. The most recent set of amendments came into...more
Canadian businesses may soon face tougher standards in merger review if amendments being considered by the government to include “structural presumptions” and more onerous remedy standards in merger reviews are passed into...more
On 10 April 2024, Australia’s Federal Government announced far-reaching reforms to its merger control regime, most notably the introduction of a new single, mandatory and suspensory, merger control system. The reform package...more
The Background: The Australian Federal Treasurer recently announced sweeping reforms to Australia's merger review regime. These reforms will overhaul the current merger review regime in Australia to introduce mandatory filing...more
On March 21, 2024, the FDIC unveiled proposed revisions to its Statement of Policy (SOP) on Bank Merger Transactions, which was last amended in 2008. The revisions would increase scrutiny of bank mergers, particularly mergers...more
Parties contemplating transactions in the defense sector need to know about a new obligation to provide materials to the Department of Defense (DOD) that will substantially affect their obligations for transactions that are...more
2024 is shaping up to be a year of significant change in Brussels. European Parliamentary elections in June will be followed by the appointment of a new Commission in the autumn....more
Our Antitrust Team examines finalized guidelines from the Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission that set forth more aggressive standards for horizontal and vertical M&A transactions....more
Last month, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued the 2023 Merger Guidelines, a draft of which was published in July. During TransPerfect Legal’s Antitrust Clearance & Merger...more
Following several years of lively public discussion, two high-profile consultations and the introduction of several “interim amendments” to the Competition Act in 2022, the federal government has now tabled two new bills...more
More hospital acquisitions may seek to avoid premerger scrutiny of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) under the HSR Act (or any antitrust inquiry ever) if a recent federal district court decision holds up and becomes settled...more
A private equity firm and its investment advisor are facing trial over claims they participated in a price-fixing conspiracy for canned tuna carried out at their portfolio company, Bumble Bee tuna. The judge overseeing the...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
Recently, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has focused on the potential harm that loyalty discounts and bundled prices could cause to competitors and their access to customers. A vendor offers a bundled discount when it...more
The Canadian government has proposed giving the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry the ability to direct the Competition Bureau to conduct market studies with the ability to compel production of related documents...more
It has been two years since President Biden signed a far-reaching, industry-spanning Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy. The Executive Order outlined a “whole-of-government” approach to...more
The draft guidelines for applying US antitrust laws to merger investigations depart from prior guidance and seek to roll back decades of legal precedent on merger enforcement. Competitive effects analyses are out;...more
The Israel Competition Authority’s Director General recently announced that, subject to a hearing, she intends to rule that Strauss and Wyler Farm violated the Economic Competition Law and implemented a merger that could harm...more
Last week the Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission (Antitrust Agencies) jointly released a draft of their long-awaited revised Merger Guidelines, which reflect the Biden Administration’s ramped up merger...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on July 19, 2023, jointly announced the release of proposed Merger Guidelines that would expand significantly the number and types of transactions...more
The Federal Trade Commission and the US Department of Justice Antitrust Division have released their revised Merger Guidelines. Which industries will be most affected? What should companies be doing now to avoid regulatory...more
On June 27, 2023 the Federal Trade Commission, with the concurrence of the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice, (together, the “Agencies”) announced proposed amendments to the premerger notification rules that...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has proposed sweeping new Hart-Scott-Rodino Act (HSR) rules along with a new proposed HSR form that would completely change the HSR process. The proposed form—which the FTC prepared in...more