Antitrust Lawyer Blog

On March 28th, Federal Trade Commission Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras announced the appointments of two new deputy directors of the FTC's Bureau of Competition. Kenneth L. Glazer joins the agency from The Coca-Cola Company, and David P. Wales, Jr. from Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP's Washington office.

On March 27th, the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice jointly released a “Commentary on the Horizontal Merger Guidelines” that continues the agencies' ongoing efforts to increase the transparency of their decision-making processes – in this case, with regard to federal antitrust review of “horizontal” mergers between competing firms. The analytical framework…

On March 27th, Federal Trade Commission Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras kicked off an International Competition Network workshop to discuss the implementation of the ICN’s recommended practices for merger notification and review. These standards are designed to make the process for reviewing mergers more effective and efficient for both the merging parties and the sometimes multiple…

The staff of the FTC stated on March 18 in an advisory opinion letter that the proposed plan by a physician-hospital organization that would involve collective bargaining with insurers over doctor fees likely would violate federal antitrust laws. The staff concluded that the price and other competitive restraints proposed by the network were not reasonably…

On March 14th, the FTC announced that Valassis Communications, Inc., a leading producer of free-standing newspaper inserts (“FSIs”) in the United States, has settled charges that it attempted to collude with News America Marketing, its only FSI rival, to eliminate competition between the two companies. Under the consent order settling the FTC’s complaint, Valassis is…

On March 8th, Botox marketer Allergan, Inc., and Inamed Corporation agreed to divest the rights to develop and distribute Reloxin, a potential Botox rival, in order to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that Allergan’s $3.2 billion purchase of Inamed would violate federal antitrust laws. The FTC alleges that Allergan’s purchase of the expected first serious…

On March 5, AT&T announced its intention to merge with Bellsouth. While the Antitrust Division is conducting its investigation of the proposed merger, very little with regards to conditions or divestitures are expected because there is little overlap between the companies’ two networks. One area of concern is the area of wholesale dedicated access and…

On December 20, 2005, the Department of Justice’s (“DOJ”) Antitrust Division entered into a settlement agreement with UnitedHealth to resolve the DOJ’s antitrust concerns related to UnitedHealth’s acquisition of PacifiCare.  The settlement agreement covered three geographic markets:  Tucson, Arizona; Boulder, Colorado; and California. Tucson, Arizona The DOJ was concerned that UnitedHealth and PacifiCare were among…

On January 6, 2005, the Commission ruled that Chicago Bridge & Iron Company (“CB&I”) illegally acquired Pitt-Des Moines, Inc.’s (“PDM”) Engineered Construction and Water Divisions. The FTC did not initially investigate the deal when the parties filed their Hart Scott Rodino notification forms. Eight months after the HSR waiting period expired, the FTC challenged the…