On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) adopted a Non‑Compete Clause Rule (the “Rule”) prohibiting most employee non‑compete agreements as unfair methods of competition by a vote of 3 to 2. The Rule is a...more
A recent government initiative announced on March 5, 2024 signals that more antitrust scrutiny for private equity firms and asset managers is on the horizon. The U.S. antitrust agencies, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”)...more
Effective on March 6, 2024, the mandatory notification thresholds under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended (the “HSR Act”), will be increasing. The Size of Transaction threshold will jump...more
2/2/2024
/ Antitrust Division ,
Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Consumer Price Index ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Filing Fees ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Mergers ,
Pre-Merger Filing Requirements ,
Size of Persons Test ,
Size of Transaction Test ,
The Clayton Act ,
Threshold Requirements
On December 18, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and the Department of Justice Antitrust Division (“DOJ”) released final revisions to the Merger Guidelines (the “2023 Merger Guidelines”) that frame the agencies’...more
News of a recently filed Federal Court petition against Total Wine & More (“Total Wine”) has brought renewed focus on aggressive actions by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) to enforce antitrust laws, even at great expense...more
The Department of Justice Antitrust Division and Federal Trade Commission issued new draft Merger Guidelines on July 19 that aim to significantly increase scrutiny of merger activity. The new Merger Guidelines would replace...more
Big changes appear to be in store for the premerger notification program under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (the “HSR Act”). The HSR notification process currently requires parties to transactions...more
6/30/2023
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Foreign Governments ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
NAICS ,
NPRM ,
Section 8 ,
Term Sheets ,
The Clayton Act ,
Threshold Requirements
Companies looking at M&A deals with an EU exposure, or preparing to respond to an EU public tender, will face a new regulatory constraint as the European Commission has enacted its long awaited (and criticised) Foreign...more
In February, the threshold for mandatory filing under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended (the “HSR Act”) will be increasing, and filing fees are also being adjusted for the first time in...more
The FTC recently concluded that many noncompete agreements between employers and employees violate federal antitrust law. These actions represent a rejection of the centuries-old principle that noncompete provisions are...more
The Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice has focused attention recently on an oft-overlooked provision of U.S. antitrust law prohibiting “interlocking directorates.” This prohibition is found in Section 8 of the...more
Private equity firms should take special note of the Federal Trade Commission’s recent consent decree in a deal combining two veterinary service providers, because it may be a bellwether of things to come....more