Bruce retired from Mintz in 2026. He was Chair of the firm's Antitrust Practice.
Experience
viewpoints
Not Cleared for Takeoff: DOJ Sues to Stop American-JetBlue Alliance in the Northeast
September 27, 2021 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Tinny Song
Busy Week for the FTC Shows Aspirations of and Limitations on Chair Khan’s Enforcement Agenda
July 9, 2021 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Lexie Gallo-Cook
Last week was momentous for the Federal Trade Commission. First, the campaign use antitrust to reign in “Big Tech” faced a setback as the United States District Court for District of Columbia dismissed the FTC’s suit against Facebook (as well as a similar suit brought by virtually all the State Attorney Generals). In juxtaposition, on July 1, 2021, the FTC held an unusual open meeting of the Commission. Clearly indicating that she intends to utilize her 3-2 Democratic majority while she has it1, Chair Lina Khan passed several agenda items foreshadowing broad, aggressive antitrust enforcement activity by the FTC.
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President Biden’s Competition Executive Order’s “Encouragement” to the FTC and DOJ Antitrust Division
July 9, 2021 | Alert | By Bruce Sokler, Robert Kidwell
Read about President Biden’s July 9 Executive Order with 72 initiatives to promote competition in the U.S. economy, including through actions directed at labor markets and the health care, technology, agriculture, and banking sectors.
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International Coalition of Competition Enforcement Agencies Seek Public Comment to Explore “New or Refreshed” Theories of Competitive Harm Related to Pharmaceutical Mergers
May 13, 2021 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Tinny Song
On Tuesday, May 11, 2021, an international coalition of competition enforcement agencies including the Federal Trade Commission, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, Offices of State Attorneys General, Canada’s Competition Bureau, the European Commission Directorate General for Competition, and the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority issued a notice seeking public input to inform their approaches to analyzing the competitive effects of pharmaceutical mergers.
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The Tail Cannot Wag the Dog: the U.S. Supreme Court Rules that the FTC Cannot Seek Equitable Monetary Relief in Section 13(b) Cases
April 27, 2021 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Evelyn French
On April 22, 2021, in a unanimous decision authored by Justice Stephen Breyer, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) does not have the authority to seek monetary relief under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act. The decision in AMG Capital Management, LLC v. Federal Trade Commission has significant ramifications for the FTC’s enforcement authority in federal courts. Additionally, it is likely that this ruling will spur Congress to take a serious look at amending Section 13(b) to provide an express right to equitable monetary relief. Indeed, just today, in testimony before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce, the FTC asked Congress to pass such an amendment.
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Pass the Salt: DOJ Requires Stone Canyon to Divest Its Evaporated Salt Business to Obtain Merger Clearance
April 22, 2021 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Tinny Song
Earlier this week, Stone Canyon Industry Holdings LLC (“Stone Canyon”) and its portfolio company SCIH Salt Holdings Inc. (“SCIH”) reached a settlement agreement with the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) to resolve its investigation of SCIH’s proposed acquisition of Morton Salt Inc. (“Morton”). Under the terms of the settlement agreement, which is subject to Tunney Act review, Stone Canyon and SCIH are required to divest all assets relating to evaporated salt in order to proceed with the Morton acquisition. This settlement agreement is noteworthy in that the divestiture was of the buyer to divest its own assets in order to proceed with the transaction, and the DOJ and the parties reached agreement without a divestiture buyer identified.
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Staffing Company Criminally Indicted for Targeting School Nurses in Wage-Fixing and No-Poach Scheme
March 31, 2021 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Farrah Short
The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced yesterday a criminal indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Las Vegas, Nevada charging a health care staffing company and its former manager of entering into and engaging in a conspiracy with a competitor to allocate and fix the wages of employee nurses in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act (15 U.S.C. § 1).
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DOJ Reaches Acquisition Settlement with Geisinger, Evangelical; Demonstrates Department’s Willingness to Challenge a Minority Investment
March 8, 2021 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Evelyn French
Last week, Geisinger Health (“Geisinger”) and Evangelical Community Hospital (“Evangelical”) reached a settlement agreement with the Department of Justice (“DOJ”), resolving the DOJ’s ongoing litigation challenging Geisinger’s partial acquisition of Evangelical. Notably, the settlement agreement, among other terms, limits Geisinger’s ownership interest in Evangelical to a 7.5% passive investment and prevents Geisinger from exercising any control or influence over Evangelical.
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FTC Abandons Appeal of Philadelphia Hospital Merger, Allowing Jefferson and Einstein to Proceed with Creation of 18-Hospital System
March 2, 2021 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Robert Kidwell
Back in December, we wrote about a district court ruling rejecting the Federal Trade Comission’s (“FTC”) motion to enjoin the proposed combination of Thomas Jefferson University (“TJU”) and Albert Einstein Healthcare Network (“Einstein”) that would create an 18-hospital system in the Philadelphia area. The FTC and the Pennsylvania Attorney General had alleged the merger would lead to TJU/Einstein controlling at least 60% of the inpatient GAC hospital services market in a portion of Philadelphia. Following the district court decision, the FTC quickly appealed to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals and filed an emergency motion for a stay pending appeal. Days later, a three-judge panel denied the government’s motion without comment.
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Fourth Circuit Affirms District Court’s First-of-Its-Kind Divestiture Order in Private Merger Challenge
February 23, 2021 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Tinny Song
On February 18, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit upheld the divestiture order issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in a private merger challenge brought by Steves and Sons Inc. (“Steves”) against Jeld-Wen Inc. (“Jeld-Wen”) relating to Jeld-Wen’s acquisition of CraftMaster Manufacturing Inc. (“CMI”) in 2012. While divestitures are the government’s preferred remedy when it challenges a merger, this case represents the first instance when this remedy was ordered in a private litigation.
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News & Press
Five Mintz Attorneys Recognized as ‘Top Authors’ by JD Supra
February 24, 2026|
How DOJ's Visa Debit Monopolization Suit May Unfold
October 28, 2024|
FTC Theories Of Harm After Anesthesia Co. Ruling
June 3, 2024|
The Capitol Forum Interviews Mintz's Bruce Sokler
April 22, 2024|
Are the Google, Amazon Suits This Generation's Microsoft?
November 26, 2023|
Thirteen Mintz Members Named To Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators List
September 11, 2023|
FTC Pharma Merger Digest May Offer Policy Clues
June 15, 2023|
NEW YORK and WASHINGTON, D.C. – Mintz is pleased to announce that Therese Doherty, Stephen J. Gulotta, Jr., and Bruce Sokler, have been named by corporate counsel to BTI Consulting Group’s Client Service All-Stars 2023, an elite list of client service leaders among law firms nationwide.
FTC Shift In Compulsory Process Lends Staff More Clout
September 12, 2022|
Poultry Sector Wage-Fixing Case Shows Info Exchange Risks
August 31, 2022|
Private Equity On Notice Due To Vet Clinic FTC Settlement
June 16, 2022|
Five Mintz Attorneys Recognized as Client Service All-Stars by BTI
February 8, 2022|
Biden Enforcers Fail to Stem Rising Merger Tide
October 22, 2021|
Mintz Attorneys and Practices Recognized by Chambers USA 2020
April 24, 2020|
One Hundred Mintz Attorneys Ranked as Leaders by Best Lawyers 2020
August 15, 2019|
Mintz Recognized by Chambers USA 2019
April 26, 2019|
Antitrust Case against BCBS to Continue under Per Se Standard
February 1, 2019|
Chambers USA 2018 Ranks Mintz Attorneys & Practices
May 3, 2018|
Mintz Honored by JD Supra's 2018 Reader's Choice Awards
March 19, 2018|
Antitrust World Eyes Justices On AmEx Steering Case
February 23, 2018|
Hospital Consolidation
December 4, 2017|
What’s at Stake in the AmEx Merchant Rules Case?
October 16, 2017|
Physician Practice Acquisitions And Antitrust Scrutiny
September 19, 2017|
DOJ About-Face In High Court AmEx Case Has Attys Puzzled
August 9, 2017|
Chambers USA 2017 Ranks Mintz Attorneys & Practices
May 26, 2017|
Discord Between Ballad Health and the FTC
April 23, 2017|
Emboldened, the FTC Seems Ready to Fight More Mergers
November 21, 2016|
Chicago Hospital Case Could Hinge on Efficiency Argument
November 3, 2016|
Mintz Represents Seventh Generation, Inc. in Sale to Unilever
October 27, 2016|
FTC wins appeal to halt Penn State Hershey/PinnacleHealth merger
September 28, 2016|
Hospital Merger Stalls After FTC Court Win
September 27, 2016|
DOJ Loss In AmEx Case Could Imperil Hospital Steering Suit
September 27, 2016|
Six Mintz Members to Speak at 2016 IBA Annual Conference
September 12, 2016|
What Have Merchants Gained From Payment Card Litigation?
August 10, 2016|
5 Questions To Watch As DOJ Targets Carolinas HealthCare
June 13, 2016|
49 Mintz Attorneys Featured in Chambers USA 2016 Guide
May 31, 2016|
5 Ways to Ease the Pain of an Antitrust Review
May 23, 2016|
Rodeo Associations Fail to Rein in Each Other in Round 1
February 9, 2016|
Mintz’s Wins Significant Antitrust Case for C-SPAN
June 10, 2013|
Mintz Advises on Top Greentech Deal of 2012
January 8, 2013|
podcasts
Biden’s Executive Order on Antitrust Competition: What Does It Mean for the Health Care Industry?
July 19, 2021 | Podcast | By Bruce Sokler
Joe Miller and Bruce Sokler, Co-Chairs of Mintz's Antitrust Practice, discuss President Biden’s July 9 executive order, which called for a government-wide focus on antitrust competition issues and identified 72 initiatives across several industries.
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Events & Speaking
Panelist
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May
17
2018
Antitrust in Healthcare
American Bar Association and American Health Lawyers Association
The Ritz-Carlton Arlington, VA
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Moderator
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Apr
23
2015
Recent Insights
