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Payton T. Thornton

(he/him/his)

Associate

[email protected]

+1.202.434.7435

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Payton focuses his practice on antitrust and competition matters, including antitrust compliance, merger review, and government investigations. He primarily advises clients in the health care sector.

While earning his JD, Payton served as an antitrust legal intern at Mintz, assisting with federal merger reviews. He also worked as an antitrust law clerk for a think tank focused on technology issues, where his role included drafting, filing, and submitting comments before the Federal Trade Commission on worker non-competes, exclusionary contracts, and unfair methods of competition rulemaking authority. His other roles included working as a research assistant at the Global Antitrust Institute as well as an in-house law clerk for the Stand Together philanthropic community, where he counseled the organization’s clients on a broad range of issues, including employment law, charitable giving, corporate reorganization, tax status, and election law.

In law school, Payton earned his JD with a concentration in Antitrust Law. He served as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Law, Economics and Policy and was on the ABA Nationals Team of the Antonin Scalia Law School Moot Court Board.

viewpoints

Out with the Old: The Antitrust Division Withdraws Healthcare Enforcement Policy Statements

February 7, 2023 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Joseph Miller, Payton Thornton

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Is Antitrust ESG's Achilles Heel ? House Republicans Think So.

December 13, 2022 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Jacob Hupart, Tinny Song, Payton Thornton

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A Dose of Steroids: Chair Khan's FTC Releases Expansive Policy Statement on Unfair Methods of Competition

November 14, 2022 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Joseph Miller, Payton Thornton

This article examines The Federal Trade Commission's (the “FTC”) long-awaited policy statement on its authority to police “unfair methods of competition in or affecting commerce."
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On the Board: DOJ Gets First Win in Criminal No-Poach Prosecution

October 31, 2022 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Tinny Song, Payton Thornton

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DOJ Makes Good on Promise to Review Interlocking Directorates

October 21, 2022 | Blog | By Bruce Sokler, Robert Kidwell, Payton Thornton

The Department of Justice Antitrust Division (“DOJ”) recently announced that it has required several directors to resign from simultaneously serving on the corporate boards of competitor companies.
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Recognition & Awards

  • George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School: Marketplace of Ideas Award (2022)

  • George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, LGBTQ Resources Center: Possibility Model Award (2022)

  • Washington DC Super Lawyers: Rising Star - Antitrust Litigation (2024)

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Involvement

  • Young Lawyer Representative to The Antitrust Source, Antitrust Law Section, American Bar Association
  • Board of Directors, District of Columbia LGBTQ+ Bar Association
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