The Paul, Weiss Antitrust Practice advises clients on a full range of global antitrust matters, including antitrust regulatory clearance, government investigations, private litigation, and counseling and compliance. The firm represents clients before antitrust and competition authorities in the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom and other jurisdictions around the world.
DOJ Challenges Non-HSR Reportable Transactions
May 29, 2007 Full PDF
On May 22, 2007, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (the "DOJ") filed a civil antitrust lawsuit challenging a series of 2004 transactions that eliminated competition between the only two daily newspapers in Charleston, West Virginia. The challenged transactions were not reportable under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (the "HSR Act"), and the DOJ did not learn about the transactions until after they had been consummated. The DOJ's lawsuit is a useful reminder that the DOJ and the Federal Trade Commission will investigate and prosecute transactions that fall below the HSR Act's reporting thresholds or are otherwise exempt from the HSR Act's notification and waiting period requirements, and that firms considering such transactions therefore need to evaluate their possible antitrust implications.