Author: Steven J. Cernak Recently, I was researching 2021 antitrust developments to update my Antitrust in Distribution and Franchising book and draft a long article for another publication. That research confirmed that new government antitrust enforcers and their actions gathered the most attention last year — but this blog covered…
Author: Aaron Gott A couple years ago, clamor for antitrust scrutiny of the agricultural industry was growing apace. But then the pandemic happened. Demand bottomed out, processing plants shuttered and everyone feared an unprecedented virus-induced recession. The clamor disappeared. The National Pork Producers Council even won approval from the U.S.…
Author: Luis Blanquez “The legislature hereby finds and declares that there is great concern for the growing accumulation of power in the hands of large corporations. While technological advances have improved society, these companies possess great and increasing power over all aspects of our lives. Over one hundred years ago,…
Author: Jarod Bona Some antitrust questions are easy: Is naked price-fixing among competitors a Sherman Act violation? Yes, of course it is. Indeed, it is a per se antitrust violation. But there is one issue that is not only a common occurrence but also a source of great controversy among antitrust…
Author: Steven J. Cernak Remember when UPS ran TV commercials, complete with jingles, trying to make logistics something that everyone cares about? No need now. Now, everyone knows how supply chain issues can affect toilet paper supplies, microchips for cars and, perhaps, even make Santa late with toys and decorations…
Authors: Steven Cernak and Luis Blanquez FTC Chairwoman Lina Khan keeps up her frenetic crusade to change the practice of antitrust enforcement. The new––and surely not last––change: the vertical merger guidelines. On Wednesday, September 15, 2021, the FTC held an open virtual meeting to discuss the following: Proposed Withdrawal of…
Author: Pat Pascarella The press is awash in reports on proposed amendments to the antitrust laws and heightened, and in some instances targeted, enforcement agendas at the DOJ, FTC, and state AGs’ offices. While the specifics of each may be fascinating to antitrust attorneys and law professors, the sole question…
Authors: Steve Cernak and Luis Blanquez New management at the FTC keeps reviewing all aspects of the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) premerger notification process. On August 26, the current head of the Bureau of Competition posted a change to a long-standing FTC informal interpretation about how potential HSR filers should view debt…
Author: Steven J. Cernak In addition to being a full-time antitrust attorney at Bona Law PC, I have taught at least one antitrust course every year since 2009 at three different Michigan law schools. As I prepare for another semester, I had reason to return to an article I wrote…
Author: Jon Cieslak I recently wrote about the DOJ Antitrust Division’s Leniency Program, and the benefits it can provide to a company engaged in criminal antitrust conduct. Those benefits can extend beyond a company’s immunity agreement with the DOJ to the civil litigation that frequently follows a DOJ investigation. The…