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Robert Langer

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Bob is recognized as one of the country’s foremost authorities on antitrust, consumer protection, and trade regulation law. He possesses unparalleled experience in counseling, litigation, and regulatory investigations in the field.

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On December 19, 2025, New York’s Governor signed into law the Fostering Affordability and Integrity Through Reasonable Business Practices Act (“FAIR Business Practices Act”). The FAIR Business Practices Act amends Sections 348 and 349 of New York’s General Business Law for the first time since the 1970s.

The Act makes three key changes, expanding: (1) the New York Attorney General’s enforcement authority; (2) the…

Read More New York’s Fair Business Practices Act Significantly Expands State Consumer Protection Law

The last stretch of 2025 saw significant developments in antitrust litigation involving algorithmic pricing and listing services in the real estate sector. As artificial-intelligence driven software and other real estate business practices continue to generate antitrust litigation, companies should remain vigilant about the risks of incorporating new technologies and listing policies into their business models.

Algorithmic Pricing: Settlements and New Legislation.

Four settlements involving algorithmic…

Read More 2025 Antitrust Round-Up

On December 22, 2025, the FTC reopened and set aside the FTC’s 2024 consent order against the AI company Rytr LLC.[1] This move was made by the two active members, Chair Andrew Ferguson and Commissioner Mark Meador, leading the normally five-member agency. These members ordered the Rytr consent decree to be set aside because the initial complaint against Rytr “failed to satisfy the legal…

Read More FTC Sets Aside Rytr LLC Final Order, Citing the Trump Administration’s AI Action Plan

Wiggin and Dana’s Robert M. Langer, a senior counsel in the firm’s Hartford office and co-chair of the firm’s Antitrust and Technology Disputes Practice Group, and New Haven Partner, Kim E. Rinehart, chair of the firm’s Class Action Defense Practice Group, have co-authored the 2025-2026 Edition of “Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices, Business Torts and Antitrust,” Vol. 12 of the Connecticut Practice Series, just…

Read More Wiggin and Dana Attorneys Co-Author Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices, Business Torts and Antitrust, 2025-2026 ed. (Vol. 12, Connecticut Practice Series)

Wiggin and Dana’s Robert M. Langer and Zeynep E. Vallance, together with Quyen Truong of Covington & Burling LLP and Alundai Benjamin of Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP, each former UConn Law School students of Mr. Langer, have co-authored the Connecticut Chapter of the Sixth Edition of State Antitrust Practice and Statutes (SAPS). This edition marks a milestone as the first chapter to be released…

Read More Wiggin and Dana Co-Authors SAPS (6th Edition) Connecticut Chapter — First ABA Antitrust eBook Released

Recent merger settlements further confirm that merger remedies are back and indicate the healthcare industry remains a priority for antitrust enforcers.

In July, we published an alert regarding the resolutions of two merger investigations initiated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice Antitrust Division (DOJ).[1] We observed a key shift in enforcement policies under the new Trump administration based on…

Read More Merger Remedies Are Back in Play: Recent Developments

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced two important changes affecting how it will address noncompetition agreements and covenants. One is the dismissal by the FTC of its noncompete rule, thus ending the agency’s attempt to seek judicial review of two decisions that held both the trade regulation process as well as the substance of the rule flawed. The second is the initiative by the…

Read More The FTC Intends to Challenge Non-Competes on a Case by Case Basis

On September 18, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), along with seven states,[1] filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the Central District of California.[2] This complaint alleges that Ticketmaster LLC (“Ticketmaster”) and its parent company Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (“Live Nation”) (collectively “Ticketmaster”) have “deceived artists and consumers by engaging in bait-and-switch pricing through advertising lower prices for tickets than…

Read More Live Nation Faces New Challenge from FTC regarding Deceptive Ticket Prices

On August 15, 2025, D.C. District Judge Sparkle L. Sooknanan issued a preliminary injunction preventing the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) from implementing or enforcing the Civil Investigative Demand (“CID”) that it had issued to the left-wing watchdog journalism organization, Media Matters for America.[1] Judge Sooknanan warned that “[i]t should alarm all Americans when the Government retaliates against individuals or organizations for engaging in constitutionally…

Read More D.C. District Court Blocks FTC Investigation Into Watchdog Journalism Non-Profit, “Media Matters for America”

UPDATE: The Trump Administration immediately appealed Judge AliKhan’s order to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. On July 21, 2025, the Court of Appeals entered an administrative stay, thus temporarily blocking Slaughter’s reinstatement to the FTC. In a one page order, the Court of Appeals explained that the purpose of the stay is to “give the court sufficient opportunity…

Read More D.C. District Court Finds President Trump’s Firing of FTC Commissioner Illegal