The wait is over!
On October 10th, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) unanimously approved the first significant revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act premerger notification regime since its inception over 40...more
Leading up to the U.S. presidential election this November, our Antitrust & Competition team continues to offer insights into what antitrust enforcement may look like under the next presidential administration. As we look...more
9/11/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Biden Administration ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Presidential Elections
Leading up to the U.S. presidential election this November, our Antitrust & Competition team will offer thoughts and insights into what antitrust enforcement will look like under the next presidential administration. While...more
9/4/2024
/ Antitrust Division ,
Competition ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Government Agencies ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Healthcare ,
Kamala Harris ,
Presidential Elections ,
Private Equity ,
Trump Administration
On August 28th, the Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC”) and the Department of Justice Antitrust Division (the “DOJ”) (the “Antitrust Agencies”), together with the Department of Labor (the “DOL”) and National Labor Relations...more
8/30/2024
/ Antitrust Division ,
Competition ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Government Agencies ,
Memorandum of Understanding ,
Merger Reviews ,
Mergers ,
NLRB
On July 3, 2024, Judge Ada Brown of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas entered a limited, preliminary injunction barring the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) from enforcing its controversial Final Rule...more
8/22/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Arbitrary and Capricious ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
Lack of Authority ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Set-Asides ,
Statutory Authority ,
Texas
On July 3, District Judge Ada Brown of the Northern District of Texas issued an order enjoining the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) from enforcing its “Final Rule” against plaintiffs Ryan, LLC (“Ryan”) and the U.S. Chamber...more
7/8/2024
/ Appeals ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Texas
On June 6, 2024, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that he led a multistate coalition of eleven (11) state attorneys general in in submitting a comment letter (the “Comment Letter”) in response to the Federal...more
The health care industry has been a particular focus of antitrust concern in recent years, including recent policy initiatives, private equity warnings, and enforcement actions from both the Department of Justice (DOJ) and...more
On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued its Final Rule banning employers from imposing post-employment noncompete requirements on their workers (the “Final Rule”). The FTC has indicated that it will...more
5/1/2024
/ Competition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
FTC Act ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Labor Reform ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Tax Exempt Entities
On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC”) voted 3-2 to issue its final rule (“Final Rule”) banning employers from imposing noncompete clauses on their workers, approving the final rule in a special Open...more
4/25/2024
/ Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Exemptions ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
FTC Act ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Proposed Rules ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Unfair Competition
On March 5, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“the FTC”) hosted a public workshop titled “Private Capital, Public Impact: An FTC Workshop on Private Equity in Health Care”, which covered the impact of private equity...more
On December 18, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice (the “Agencies”) jointly issued Final Merger Guidelines, following a public comment period on the Proposed Merger Guidelines first issued in July....more
12/21/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Horizontal Merger Guidelines ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Vertical Mergers
Last week the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a press release highlighting recent and forthcoming actions by the FTC, Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which they say...more
On June 27, 2023, the FTC and DOJ (together the “Agencies”) announced a notice of proposed rulemaking (“NPRM”) proposing extensive revisions to both the rules that implement the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act...more
On September 21, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sued Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe (WCAS) and U.S. Anesthesia Partners, Inc. (USAP), in the Southern District of Texas, alleging the two companies “[e]xecuted a...more
9/27/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Healthcare ,
Investment ,
Mergers ,
Private Equity ,
Private Equity Firms ,
Texas
As generative AI becomes an increasingly integral part of the modern economy, antitrust and consumer protection agencies continue to raise concerns about the technology’s potential to promote unfair methods of competition....more
On July 19, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice jointly published long-anticipated proposed merger guidelines (the “Proposed Merger Guidelines”), which had been expected since President Biden issued...more
The FTC announced today a notice of proposed rulemaking (“NPRM”) proposing extensive revisions to both the rules that implement the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act (the “Act” or “HSR Act”), and the Premerger...more
The Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC”) and Department of Justice, Antitrust Division (the “DOJ”) (together the “Agencies”) continue to carry out the Biden Administration’s stated mission to reinvigorate antitrust...more
On April 14, 2023, in a decision involving appeals regarding two separate agency enforcement actions, the Supreme Court unanimously held that respondents in such actions may raise certain constitutional challenges outside of...more
On March 9, the FTC unanimously voted to block the proposed merger between the nation’s largest provider of home mortgage loan origination systems (LOS) and other key lender software tools, and its top competitor that offers...more
3/17/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Competition ,
Digital Platforms ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Mergers ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgage Loan Originators ,
Mortgages ,
Software ,
Technology ,
Vendors
On Friday, February 3, the Department of Justice, Antitrust Division (the “DOJ”) announced its withdrawal of three policy statements on health care antitrust enforcement: (1) The Department of Justice and Federal Trade...more
According to people with knowledge of the matter, the Federal Trade Commission is conducting a preliminary investigation of Coca-Cola and PepsiCo to determine whether their pricing practices in the soft drink market segment...more
On January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced a broad proposed rule that would ban employers from imposing noncompete clauses on their workers. The FTC press release announcing the proposed rule states...more
1/9/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Labor Reform ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Unfair Competition
On Dec. 29, 2022, President Biden signed into law H.R. 2617, the “Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023.” Included within H.R. 2617 is The Merger Filing Fee...more