The FTC and DOJ jointly published draft merger guidelines reflecting the agencies’ current aggressive approach to merger enforcement. In an article, Mintz Antitrust attorneys discuss the draft guidelines’ move away from the consumer welfare standard, lower thresholds for deals presumed to be illegal, and other key changes, including a focus on the effect of industry roll-ups.

On Monday, the FTC lost its bid to preliminarily enjoin Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision, the maker of the popular video game, “Call of Duty.” 

The Federal Trade Commission, in coordination with the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division, recently released a summary of the Agencies’ June 2022 joint workshop titled “The Future of Pharmaceuticals: Examining the Analysis of Pharmaceutical Mergers.”

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced Monday that it had reversed its in-house Administrative Law Judge’s (“ALJ”) Initial Decision dismissing a complaint brought by FTC staff against Illumina, Inc.’s acquisition of GRAIL, Inc.

On March 16, the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division (“DOJ Antitrust Division”) announced that a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging a former health care staffing executive of fixing wages for nurses.

The Federal Trade Commission on Friday announced a Request for Information regarding “franchise agreements and franchisor business practices, including how franchisors may exert control over franchisees and their workers.”

In a closely watched private antitrust case, Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center, Inc. (“St. Francis”) sued its rival, the Hartford Healthcare Corporation (“HHC”), and on February 13, 2023, the litigation survived a motion to dismiss.

Late last week, the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division announced its withdrawal of a string of healthcare enforcement policy statements issued in 1993, 1996, and 2011.

Prior to the recent midterm elections, we wrote about five Senate Republicans who issued a warning letter to major U.S. law firms regarding the potential antitrust implications of Environmental, Social, and Governance (“ESG”) investing and activities. The letter advises that ESG activities may be viewed as “climate cartels” and present antitrust risk when firms engage in ESG group initiatives. With the midterm election results, those Senate Republicans will likely not be able to follow through on this line of investigation. However, House Republicans have taken up the issue, and they will have the ability to conduct antitrust scrutiny of ESG initiatives.