As reflected in the December 2023 merger guidelines, the Federal Trade Commission and the US Department of Justice have changed the way they think about out-of-market effects, i.e., competitive effects that arise outside the relevant market. In this Law360 article, Lisa Rumin and Anthony Ferrara unpack this new approach, which was prominently demonstrated during the […] The post Blocked JetBlue-Spirit Deal Illustrates New Antitrust Approach appeared first on ANTITRUST ALERT ..read more

The American Bar Association Antitrust Law Section’s annual Spring Meeting concluded on April 12. The annual Spring Meeting featured updates from federal, state and international antitrust enforcers and extensive discussion on priority antitrust issues affecting various industries. In this article, we highlight takeaways from the final two days of the Spring Meeting. Read more here. The post Heard at the 2024 Antitrust Law Section Spring Meeting: Part II appeared first on ANTITRUST ALERT ..read more

The American Bar Association Antitrust Law Section’s annual Spring Meeting is underway in Washington, DC. The annual Spring Meeting features updates from federal, state and international antitrust enforcers and extensive discussion on priority antitrust issues affecting various industries. In this article, we highlight the key takeaways from the first portion of the Spring Meeting. Read […] The post Heard at the 2024 Antitrust Law Section Spring Meeting: Part I appeared first on ANTITRUST ALERT ..read more

BACKGROUND Google LLC and Alphabet Inc. (Google) moved to dismiss a third successive complaint that alleged it tied the sales of Maps, Routes and Places application programming interface (API) services to one another. A basic tying claim involves a seller leveraging its market power in one product (the “tying” product) to force sales and gain […] The post Google Moves to Dismiss Third Complaint Alleging Tying of Google Maps API Services appeared first on ANTITRUST ALERT ..read more

Topics covered in this edition: New Merger Guidelines Released FTC Focused on Pharmaceutical Companies FTC Targets “Moat-Building” Mergers Fifth Circuit Fuels FTC’s Vertical Mergers Agenda FTC Losing Streak Reverses During the Fourth Quarter Ex post Review in the Merger Control Sphere Occurring More and More Frequently Access the full issue. The post Antitrust M&A Snapshot | Q4 2023 appeared first on ANTITRUST ALERT ..read more

Vertical mergers are inherently more difficult for the government to litigate than horizonal mergers. After not litigating a vertical merger case since the 1970s, the Federal Trade Commission and the US Department of Justice have recently tried several matters. In this Westlaw Today article, Jon Dubrow, Stephen Wu, Matt Evola and Bailey Sanders discuss key […] The post The Fix Is In – Key Learnings From Recent Vertical Merger Challenges appeared first on ANTITRUST ALERT ..read more

When it comes to antitrust criminal enforcement, 2023 will be remembered as the year when the US Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Antitrust Division redefined and tested the outer boundaries of its authority. This report looks back at the key events from the DOJ’s year in criminal antitrust enforcement. Here’s a glimpse of what’s inside: Despite […] The post Year in Review: Criminal Enforcement by the DOJ Antitrust Division in 2023 appeared first on ANTITRUST ALERT ..read more

WHAT HAPPENED Recently, in a rarely considered question, the US District Court of Massachusetts held that the American Red Cross (ARC), a federally chartered corporation, is not subject to liability under the Sherman Antitrust Act (Sherman Act) because it is not an antitrust “person.” The court narrowly construed the Sherman Act to exclude a quasi-public […] The post Court Finds Red Cross Has Antitrust Immunity, Rejecting Broad Interpretation of the Sherman Act appeared first on ANTITRUST ALERT ..read more

On January 22, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced increased jurisdictional thresholds, increased filing fee thresholds and filing fee amounts for merger notifications made pursuant to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (HSR Act). Merger Notification Threshold Changes The HSR Act compels transacting parties to notify the FTC and US Department of Justice […] The post FTC Announces Annual Merger Notification Threshold and Filing Fee Adjustments appeared first on ANTITRUST ALERT ..read more

WHAT HAPPENED A three-judge panel from the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit overturned an executive’s bid-rigging antitrust conviction, holding that the district court erred in applying the per se standard to the executive’s alleged bid-rigging conduct. The executive, Brent Brewbaker, rigged bids between his former employer, Contech, and its distributor, Pomona Pipe […] The post Fourth Circuit Holds Per-Se Rule Does Not Apply in Bid-Rigging Case appeared first on ANTITRUST ALERT ..read more