Our antitrust group, which is comprised of attorneys in the US and Europe, has extensive experience securing approval for mergers and acquisitions from the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and US Department of Justice (DOJ) under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act; the European Commission (EC) under the EC Merger Regulation; and other competition authorities around the world. Our experience covers virtually all industries, including biotechnology, computer and information technology, consumer goods and services, (petro) chemical, energy, financial services, healthcare, industrial equipment, media, pharmaceuticals, and telecommunications. We work with leading economists and other antitrust counsel to facilitate the speedy, successful, cost-effective, and seamless worldwide approval of transactions, whether for small private companies or the largest public companies, whether in one jurisdiction or involving competition authorities worldwide. We have several former government officials from the FTC, the Antitrust Division of the DOJ, and the EC in our group.
Arnold & Porter attorneys work with our clients at every step of the clearance process: analyzing risks associated with individual targets or buyers (and developing strategies as part of such engagements), structuring the transaction, conducting due diligence, facilitating appropriate information exchange between competitors, devising strategy to avoid gun-jumping, drafting contractual provisions relating to the merger review process and other antitrust aspects of the transaction, drafting of documents and participation in meetings with the agencies (both prior and after notification), representing clients in in-depth merger investigations, developing substantive defenses, devising and negotiating remedies with the enforcement agency where required, and generally working towards a coordinated timetable and outcome throughout the various jurisdictions involved in the approval process.
We work with our clients to fashion creative solutions to obtain expeditious clearance of their transactions. In some cases, we have delayed making formal filings until the competition agency has had significant time to begin its investigation, thereby narrowing the scope of future requests. In others, we have worked out settlements early, thereby avoiding the need to respond to significant information requests. We recognize that no one strategy fits every transaction and tailor our approach to the specifics of each client’s needs.
Our lawyers have obtained antitrust clearance for some of the most significant and complex mergers and acquisitions on both sides of the Atlantic, including:
- General Electric in the sale of a majority stake of NBC Universal to Comcast
- Intel Corporation in its US$7.7 billion purchase of McAfee
- BASF SE in its US$3.8 billion purchase of Cognis
Click here to see a representative list of our antitrust transactional experience.