Legal Blog Articles by Kenneth J. Hollenbeck

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division recently published draft 2020 Vertical Merger Guidelines for public comment. According to the agencies, the new guidelines outline their analytical techniques, practices, and enforcement policy for vertical mergers that raise antitrust concerns.

"While many vertical mergers are competitively beneficial or neutral, both the Department and the Federal Trade Commission have recognized for over 25 years that some vertical transactions can raise serious concern," said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of DOJ's Antitrust Division. He added that "[T]he revised draft guidelines are based on new economic understandings and the agencies’ experience over the past several decades and better reflect the agencies' actual practice in evaluating proposed vertical mergers”.