On April 24, 2025, Senior Counsel Robert M. Langer will participate in a webinar hosted by the American Bar Association Antitrust Law Section. Bob will share insights on key legal precedents, multistate enforcement, and the role of state attorneys general. Participants will gain valuable perspectives on past and current trends shaping competition law.
A Senior Counsel at Wiggin and Dana, Bob Langer has represented clients…
Read More Antitrust Insights: A Conversation with Robert M. LangerThe potential for antitrust challenges brought by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) or the United States Department of Justice (“DOJ”) is well known among deal-making parties. However, parties should also keep in mind two lesser-known antitrust issues when seeking to complete their merger: (1) the potential for private merger challenges; and (2) the increased likelihood of becoming engaged in multi-district litigation in the post State…
Read More Private Merger Challenges and SAEVA — What Merging Parties Need to KnowThe Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has announced its narrowed “Junk Fee” Rule that targets pricing practices in the short-term lodging and live-event ticketing industries.[1] The Rule results from the FTC’s efforts over the past year to ban so-called “bait-and-switch” pricing tactics to ensure that, “consumers searching for hotels or vacation rentals or seats at a show or sporting event will no longer be surprised…
Read More The FTC Releases New “Junk Fee” RuleAfter winning the presidency, Donald Trump will look to bring his own antitrust enforcement priorities to his second administration. During his first term, Donald Trump’s Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and Department of Justice (“DOJ”) engaged in relatively robust enforcement of the antitrust laws, including suing to block the proposed merger of AT&T/Time Warner, as well as bringing cases against Google and Meta (formerly Facebook) for…
Read More Trump 2.0 — Back to the Future?On October 16, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) released its Negative Option Rule. A “negative option” is an arrangement where goods or services are provided based on a consumer’s silence, a failure to take some affirmative action to reject or cancel. The most recognized type of negative option program is a subscription service with automatic renewal features.
The Rule, also known as the “Click-to-Cancel”…
Read More The FTC Has Significantly Expanded the Scope of Its Negative Option RuleOn October 10, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced its final rules with respect to Premerger Notification under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvement Act of 1976 (as amended) (“HSR”). The final rules formalize what will be the largest change to premerger notification requirements since at least 2000. The final rules follow from the draft rules that the FTC published in June 2023.[1] The new…
Read More FTC Finalizes Dramatic Changes to HSR Premerger FilingOn August 20, 2024, a federal court in Dallas ruled that the FTC exceeded its authority in promulgating a sweeping rule banning non-competition covenants nationwide thereby putting the rule on ice. The court determined that Congress did not grant the FTC authority to issue substantive rules concerning unfair methods of competition, as the non-compete rule purported to do, rather the FTC was only empowered to…
Read More Texas Court Strikes Down FTC’s Rule Banning Non-Competition CovenantsOn August 14, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission’s (“Commission”) new Trade Regulation Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (the “Rule”) was finalized and went into effect. The Rule prohibits specified unfair or deceptive acts or practices involving consumer reviews or testimonials. Violations of the Rule can result in a business being assessed civil penalties up to $51,744 per violation. In addition, any…
Read More Beware! The FTC Has Adopted A New Rule Regarding Fake Consumer Reviews and TestimonialsOn April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted to issue a rule prohibiting noncompete agreements with very few exceptions.[1] The issuance of the rule, which was expected, follows the FTC’s prior release of a draft of the proposed rule back in January 2023. Nevertheless, the rule will have a far-reaching effect once, and if, it is fully implemented 120 days after it…
Read More Federal Trade Commission Issuing Non-Compete Clause RuleOn April 1, the Federal Trade Commission’s (“Commission”) new Trade Regulation Rule (“Rule”) to combat those that impersonate government entities went into effect. The Rule enables the Commission to directly pursue federal action against scammers who may face civil liability to return money stolen from consumers. This Rule is not simply advisory, but rather the Rule has the force and effect of law. If one…
Read More Federal Trade Commission’s New Trade Regulation Rule