Workshop will cover implications for antitrust law, M&A and competition enforcement
The American Bar Association Antitrust Law Section is set to host a workshop in Washington, D.C., with top government officials and antitrust experts exploring new merger draft guidelines issued by the Biden administration this summer. The workshop will take place on Sept. 6.
On July 19, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission released a draft update of 13 merger guidelines, which describe and guide the agencies’ review of mergers and acquisitions to determine compliance with federal antitrust laws. Their goal is to better reflect how the agencies determine a merger’s effect on competition and evaluate proposed mergers under the law. The agencies set a Sept. 18 deadline for comments.
The proposal represents the first major revision to the guidelines in 13 years. The workshop will bring together thought leaders, judges and enforcers to discuss the implications of these changes for antitrust law, M&A and global competition enforcement.
The workshop will cover:
- Enforcement Perspective — DOJ and FTC leaders explaining how these new guidelines advance their goals and protect competition beyond what was covered in prior guidance.
- Merger Counseling Under the New Guidelines — Former enforcers, in-house counsel, experienced M&A attorneys and economists evaluating the draft guidelines and how they differ from the 2010 horizontal merger guidelines.
- Merger Litigation Under the New Guidelines — A panel of judges, trial lawyers and expert witnesses discussing their expectations for how the new merger guidelines will influence litigation strategies and outcomes, including which changes will most directly challenge existing case law.
