Recent Articles

Investment Funds Fined for Violating HSR Pre-Merger Notification Requirements

December 22, 2008 18:52

Antitrust Division’s press release: “WASHINGTON — Two related investment funds will pay civil penalties totaling $800,000 to settle charges that they violated premerger reporting requirements, the Department of Justice announced today. The Department’s Antitrust Division, at t...

Whole Food’s Sues FTC to Enjoin Administrative Proceedings

December 11, 2008 18:43

On December 8, 2008, Whole Foods brought an action in federal court claiming that the FTC’s administrative process is unconstitutional as applied to it.  (Whole Foods Complaint)  Whole Foods claims that the FTC has prejudged the FTC’s challenge to its merger with Wild Oats.  Whole Foods ...

Second New York Criminal Trial Begins Against Marsh Executives

December 08, 2008 17:53

On December 2, 2008, three Marsh executives went on trial in the Supreme Court of the State of New York (New York County) on charges of violating the Donnelly Act in connection with bid rigging of insurance policies.  As you may recall (and discussed on the February 22, 2008 Post), two Marsh ...

Whole Food’s Denied Rehearing But D.C. Circuit Amends Its Earlier Decision

December 01, 2008 16:01

On November 21, 2008, the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit denied rehearing and rehearing en banc in FTC v. Whole Foods with Judge Kavanaugh dissenting.  Judge Kavanaugh had dissenting in the original decision.  The original opinion is linked to the July 29, 2008 Post, which also ...

FTC Challenges Proposed Merger Between Firms that Provide Electronic Systems to Estmate the Cost of Collision Repairs

November 30, 2008 23:48

On November 25, 2008, the FTC issued an administrative complaint challenging the proposed merger between CCC Information Services and Mitchell International.  The FTC alleges that “the merger would hinder competition in the market for electronic systems used to estimate the cost of collision ...

Court Rejects DOJ’s Request for Prison Time for Two Defense Contractors

November 30, 2008 23:16

In November 2008, the United States District Court for the District of Maryland sentenced two defense contractors to probation who had pleaded guilty in connection with a conspiracy to steal confidential bidding information from a competitor.  The conspiracy concerned contracts to supply the ...

DOJ Loses Another Criminal Price Fixing Trial

November 16, 2008 14:47

On November 10, 2008, the DOJ Antitrust Division’s criminal section lost another high profile criminal price fixing trial. This time the individual defendant was acquitted of alleged participation in the highly publicized marine hose cartel that had resulted in numerous guilty pleas.  After a ...

Google Abandons Deal with Yahoo in Response to Antitrust Concerns

November 05, 2008 16:27

On July 2, 2008, this blawg reported that the Antitrust Division issued civil investigative demands to investigate the potential competitive effects from an agreement between Google and Yahoo that would allow Google to post advertisements on Yahoo in exchange for part of the revenue.  Google ...

DOJ Uses Familiar Delay Tactics to Try to Gain an Unfair Advantage in the Beef Packing Merger Litigation

November 03, 2008 01:00

It appears that in United States v. JBS, S.A., the government is using the same tactics that it did in United States v. UPM-Kymmene Oyj — both of which were brought in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.   The government is hoping to kill the deal by trying ...

DOJ Clears the Merger of Northwest and Delta Airlines

October 29, 2008 20:02

 Excerpt of the Antitrust Division’s press release: WASHINGTON — The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division issued the following statement today after the Division announced the closing of its investigation of the proposed merger of Delta Air Lines Inc. and Northwest Airlines Co...