Blog o’ Blogs June

Issues surrounding the appropriate size of companies and the power they hold have been at the forefront this late Spring, with iconic and potentially ground-breaking cases making noises on both sides of the Atlantic, and increasingly informing other jurisdictions as well. Changing guidelines and challenges presented by a dynamic digital market have provided ample inspiration and criticism from practitioners and academics alike, with plenty to keep an eye on as summer rolls on…

States Take Charge In Seeking to Block Merger of T-Mobile and Sprint
The unusual effort by more than a dozen state attorneys general to stop T-Mobile’s acquisition of its rival Sprint is perhaps most noteworthy for the antitrust enforcer that is not in the courtroom—the U.S. Department of Justice…
James J. Kovacs (Constantine Cannon)

How DOJ’s Updated Compliance Guidance is Relevant to Latin America
On April 30, 2019, the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) issued updated guidance on the “Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs” (Updated Evaluation Guidance) intended to “assist prosecutors in making informed decisions…
Matteson Ellis (FCP Americas)

Proposal to tighten up the Swiss Cartel Act
The Federal Council aims at tightening up the Cartel Act in order to combat the foreclosure of the Swiss market and the price discrimination against Swiss corporate customers…
Marcel Meinhardt, Astrid Waser, Benoît Merkt (Kluwer Competition)

Evolution not Revolution: the CMA’s reflections on mergers and the digital economy
Digital markets mergers are a hot topic for global antitrust regulators. The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) has published an expert report on whether the UK has struck the right balance between over and under regulation…
James Marshall and Maiji Hall (Bryan Cave)

New Paper Reveals “Stealth” Consolidation But Competitive Effects Remain Hidden
Greg Ip included this research in an article for the WSJ in which he claims that “competition has declined and corporate concentration risen through acquisitions often too small to draw the scrutiny of antitrust watchdogs …
Alec Stapp (Truth on the Market)

Why You Should Consider Filing an Amicus Brief in an Appellate Case
An amicus curiae brief is filed by a non-party—usually in an appellate court like the US Supreme Court—that seeks to educate the court by offering facts, analysis, or a perspective that the party briefing doesn’t present…
Jarod Bona (The Antitrust Attorney)

Antitrust needs public choice (Video)
Introducing the first in a series of short videos dealing with the author’s most recent article, “Antitrust Without Romance”…
Thibault Schrepel (Le Concurrentialiste)

The Enduring Rationale for “Limits of Antitrust”
We have been asked to revisit now-Judge Frank Easterbrook’s seminal 1984 article, “Limits of Antitrust”. Is it still an appropriate guide to antitrust enforcement...
Steven J. Cernak (Antitrust Connect)

Congress, Regulators, and Justice Department Gear Up to Investigate “Big Tech,” But Focus and Scope Under Current Law Remains Unclear
U.S. lawmakers, regulators, and agencies charged with antitrust oversight have long been criticized for failing to act on alleged anticompetitive activity by the world’s largest technology companies…
Timothy H. Gray and William F. Cavanaugh,Jr (Patterson Belknap)

Reports of the press’s death are greatly… understated
The debate about how to save the press from Google and Facebook… is the wrong debate to have…
Gus Hurwitz (Truth on the Market)

Indian Competition Law passes the test of constitutionality
On a comparatively hot afternoon of 10th April 2019, the Delhi High Court pronounced a seminal judgement about the constitutionality of various provisions of the (Indian) Competition Act…
Swati Sharma (Competition Commission of India/Kluwer Competition)

International Arbitration, Investment Protection and EU State Aid Rules: the General Court of the EU Annuls the European Commission’s State Aid Decision in the Micula Case
In a long-awaited ruling of June 18, 2019, the General Court of the European Union (“GCEU”) annulled the European Commission’s 2015 State aid decision in the Micula case…
Jacques Derenne and Dimitris Vallindas (Sheppard Mullin)

Uses of blockchain in the M&A process
We have previously explored some potential uses of blockchain in the M&A process. Generally, blockchain refers to a growing list of blocks linked by cryptography…
Troy Ungerman (Deal Law Wire)

An additional step towards the modernization of control of mergers in France
Decree No. 2019-339 of 18 April 2019  simplifies formalities for the notification of a prospective concentration operation, including mergers and acquisitions, to the French Competition Authority (“FCA”)…
Kathie Claret and Emmanuelle Mercier (Bryan Cave)