A Texas federal district court held on Aug. 20, 2024, that the Federal Trade Commission’s rule banning most employer-employee non-compete agreements is unlawful. This decision — unlike earlier preliminary decisions — orders...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a final rule on April 23, 2024, that would ban most employer-employee non-compete agreements. That same day, a challenge to the rule was filed in the U.S. District Court for the...more
On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted 3-to-2 to issue a final rule that will ban most employer-employee non-compete agreements if it survives legal challenges from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other...more
On Jan. 22, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced new premerger filing thresholds under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act (HSR Act) and new filing fee thresholds under the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act of 2022. The...more
On Dec. 18, 2023, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued new Merger Guidelines that explain how both agencies will analyze whether potential transactions may violate the antitrust...more
On June 27, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that, if adopted, would significantly amend the rules and instructions governing the scope of information that must be submitted in a...more
On April 28, 2023, the Department of Justice Antitrust Division suffered another setback to its expanded criminal prosecution of no-poach agreements. The trial court in United States v. Patel, et al., granted a motion to...more
With the public comment period coming to a close, business groups and others have made statements and submitted public comments criticizing the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC’s) proposed rule to ban non-compete clauses as an...more
On Feb. 22, 2023, U.S. Attorneys’ Offices throughout the country adopted a new policy that incentivizes corporate voluntary self-disclosure of misconduct. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco’s Sept. 15, 2022 memorandum...more
On Feb. 2, 2023, Doha Mekki, a senior leader of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, announced wholesale changes to the Antitrust Division’s review of companies’ information-sharing practices. The Antitrust...more
On Jan. 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission proposed a new rule that would ban non-compete agreements between employers and workers in most circumstances and require employers to rescind any existing non-compete agreements...more
Based on recent announcements and remarks of U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division (DOJ) leadership, it is clear that Section 8 of the Clayton Act, prohibiting “interlocking directorates,” is an enforcement priority...more
Last month, the Supreme Court granted certiorari in United States ex rel. Polansky v. Executive Health Resources, Inc., a case presenting the question whether the federal government forfeits the authority to dismiss False...more
On Jan. 21, 2022, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced it is publishing revised reporting thresholds for premerger filings under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (HSR Act)....more
Building on recent changes to and statements about the merger review process since Lina Khan became Chair, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced Sept. 28, 2021, that it would expand the substantive scope of its...more
On Aug. 3, 2021, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it has begun sending form letters alerting companies that have made Hart-Scott-Rodino Act (HSR) filings that, despite the expiration of the HSR waiting period, the...more