United States: Economist Perspective (2024)

Cleve Tyler and Kevin Christensen review developments in the US competition enforcement landscape, including changes to merger investigations, agency litigation and investigations, and private litigation. In particular, they provide an overview of the role of competition agencies in the US and focus on developments including:

• Antitrust enforcement over the last forty years is being challenged as having been insufficient to address competition issues in the modern economy
• The FTC has overhauled its practices and positions, including with the issuance of a new policy statement regarding Section 5 of the FTC Act
• Federal agencies have accelerated work related to competition in labor markets, including with a proposed rule by the FTC to prohibit most noncompete clauses in employment agreements
• Agencies have taken a more aggressive stance in litigation, for example with regard to mergers involving nascent competitors, potential competition, and vertical mergers, but have also faced a series of setbacks in court
• Big tech investigations and litigations continue and are expected to continue for years
• New merger guidelines have been proposed that reflect the neo-Brandeisian perspectives of agency leaders and the administration

GCR’s Enforcer Hub brings together critical information about the world’s competition enforcement agencies, written by both the agencies themselves and leading private practitioners, and from both the legal and economist perspective. Find out more about the publication (subscription required).

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