Antitrust/Competition
Arnold & Porter's Antitrust/Competition practice is recognized worldwide for its breadth and depth of experience and its track record of excellence before government enforcers and in the courts. Our strong understanding of the antitrust agencies, frequent dealings with them, and deep bench of lawyers with senior government experience in the United States and Europe provide us with valuable insight and credibility — key elements for clearing deals and addressing criminal and civil conduct investigations. Our antitrust litigators have extensive experience before judges in jurisdictions favored by the antitrust plaintiff's bar and a record of winning before trial, at trial, and on appeal. Because our Antitrust/Competition practice regularly handles the full range of complex antitrust matters, our clients benefit from the multiple perspectives brought to each engagement.
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Sophisticated Understanding of Global Competition Authorities: Our antitrust attorneys have held significant senior leadership positions within the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Justice's Antitrust Division, and the European Commission.
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Strategic Resolution of Complex and Challenging Engagements: Clients come to Arnold & Porter to handle their most complex, challenging transactions, government investigations, and antitrust litigation.
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Comprehensive Coverage: Our Antitrust/Competition team provides solutions for the full range of complex U.S., EU, and UK antitrust issues, including mergers and joint ventures, cartels and other horizontal agreements, exclusionary conduct, agreements with suppliers and distributors, the intellectual property-antitrust interface, and abusive conduct by dominant firms and state aid in the EU.
Experience Highlights
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Pfizer in its US$43 billion acquisition of Seagen, a world leader in antibody-drug conjugates.
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AbbVie in its US$63 billion acquisition of Allergan, manufacturer of the well-known medication Botox.
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Fitbit in its US$2.1 billion sale to Google.
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AT&T Inc. in its US$85.4 billion stock-and-cash acquisition of Time Warner Inc. In the U.S., we successfully defended AT&T in the first vertical merger trial and appeal in decades.
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Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals in obtaining complete defense verdict on Section 1 and Section 2 claims challenging acquisition of a potentially competing drug in bet-the-company trial in bankruptcy court.
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Las Vegas Raiders in winning dismissal of an antitrust challenge to the Oakland Raiders’ relocation to Las Vegas and preserving the judgment on appeal to the Ninth Circuit. City of Oakland v. Oakland Raiders et al.
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Major pharmaceutical company in successful defense of putative antitrust class actions alleging that defendants procured patent by fraud and engaged in sham patent litigation.
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HarperCollins Publishers and Penguin Random House in successful defense of purported retailer class action asserting Robinson-Patman Act and Section 1 claims in connection with the sale of print books, and in defense of purported eBook customer class actions asserting Section 1 claims relating to the sale of eBooks.
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Major technology manufacturer in securing the dismissal of an antitrust case that alleged an unlawful employee no-poach agreement and preserving the dismissal on appeal.
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Visa Inc. in 40 litigation actions, consolidated into MDL 1720, brought by merchants contending that practices relating to so-called "interchange" fees and "no surcharge" rules are anticompetitive.
Focus Areas
Key Contacts
Related Services
Recognition
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Global Competition Review"GCR Global Elite"—World's top 15 firms for competition (2008–2025)
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Chambers GlobalCompetition/Antitrust (Global-wide) (2025)
Competition/European Law (Belgium) (2025)
Competition/Antitrust (USA) (2025)
Competition/Antitrust (International & Cross-Border) (USA) (2025) -
Chambers USAAntitrust (Nationwide, Washington, D.C., New York) (2024)
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Chambers EuropeCompetition/European Law (Belgium) (2011–2018, 2023-2025)
Competition/Antitrust (Europe-wide) (2014–2015)
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Chambers UKCompetition Law (London) (2021)
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Vault Guide to the Top 100 Law FirmsAntitrust (2023)
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The Legal 500 USAntitrust: Cartel (2022-2024)
Antitrust: Merger Control (2022-2024)
Antitrust: Civil Litigation/Class Actions (2022-2024)
Sport (2024) -
The Legal 500 UKCorporate & Commercial: EU & Competition (2023)
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LMG Life Sciences AwardsImpact Deal Winner (2024)
Life Cycle Firm of the Year - United States (2023)
Antitrust Firm of the Year (2020) -
Law360
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The Legal 500 EuropeBelgium Competition: EU and Global (2018, 2020–2025)
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LMG Life Sciences GuideAntitrust (2024)
Non-IP Litigation & Enforcement: Antitrust (2021) -
U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers"Best Law Firms" for Antitrust – National, New York, Washington, D.C. (2025)
"Best Law Firms" for Antitrust Litigation – Washington, D.C., National, New York (2025)
