Reports of the Current FTC’s Intellectual Integrity Have Been Greatly Exaggerated
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has released its long-awaited report on pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) as an “interim staff report.” And it’s yet another staff report that doesn’t name the relevant staff. On the one hand, it does contain some useful information on industry developments. On the other, it’s just not very good—at all. With ... Reports of the Current FTC’s Intellectual Integrity Have Been Greatly Exaggerated
Rounding Out the Roundup
In yesterday’s Agencies Roundup, I discussed the likely fate of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) new rule banning most noncompete agreements, read through the lens of the Supreme Court’s Loper Bright decision. I thought the rule infirm to begin with—a somewhat foolish swing for the fences on a regulation that the FTC couldn’t possibly enforce. ... Rounding Out the Roundup
After Loper Bright, FTC Awaits Its Turn At-Bat
In an Agencies Roundup post several weeks ago, I revisited the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) newly adopted—and not-yet-effective—rule barring the use of noncompete agreements across much of the U.S. economy. It was not my first such post (my ninth, if I’ve counted correctly, and if readers will forgo armchair diagnoses of monomania). The last time ... After Loper Bright, FTC Awaits Its Turn At-Bat
FTC Alumni Response to FTC/DOJ RFI on Serial Acquisitions
As former antitrust enforcers and alumni of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), we are pleased to submit these comments to the FTC and U.S. Justice Department’s (DOJ) Antitrust Division (DOJ) in response to your Request for Information on Corporate Consolidation Through Serial Acquisitions and Roll-Up Strategies (RFI). We have devoted significant portions of our careers ... FTC Alumni Response to FTC/DOJ RFI on Serial Acquisitions
The Waiting Game: Noncompetes, Google, Roll-Ups, and More
I’ll start with a bit of half-empty, half-full (and very partial) resolution in Federal Trade Commission (FTC) publicity. Losing by Winning or Just Losing or . . . ? A couple of weeks ago, the Wall Street Journal editorial board announced that: “Another Lina Khan Theory Loses in Court” And that was right, up to ... The Waiting Game: Noncompetes, Google, Roll-Ups, and More
The Best of All Possible Places to Work?
Are things looking up at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)? Maybe, kinda, sorta? At the margin? That’s the agency spin. Before we get to the new public relations, let’s take a step back. Much ink has been spilled, and many pixels specified, over the performance of FTC management. Not a little of it has attended ... The Best of All Possible Places to Work?
The FTC Office of Patent Invalidation
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced late last month that it had “expanded its campaign against pharmaceutical manufacturers’ improper or inaccurate listing of patents in the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Orange Book, disputing junk patent listings for diabetes, weight loss, asthma, and COPD drugs, including Novo Nordisk Inc.’s blockbuster weight-loss drug, Ozempic.” Warning letters ... The FTC Office of Patent Invalidation
Once More Unto the Breach, Dear Friends: More Regulatory Overreach by the FTC
Go big or go home, they say. It’s not really an either-or choice: one can go big, and then go home. Not infrequently, an attempt to go big is what gets one sent home. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) swung for the fences in April 23’s open meeting. On purely partisan lines, the commission voted ... Once More Unto the Breach, Dear Friends: More Regulatory Overreach by the FTC
Antitrust at the Agencies Roundup: Spring Has Sprung
Last week was the occasion of the “spring meeting”; that is, the big annual antitrust convention in Washington, D.C. hosted by the American Bar Association (ABA) Antitrust Section. To engage in a bit of self-plagiarism (efficient for me, at least), I had this to say about it last year: For those outside the antitrust world, ... Antitrust at the Agencies Roundup: Spring Has Sprung
Antitrust at the Agencies Roundup: The Supply Chain, Part Deux
But First, Money Makes the World Go ‘Round For all my carping about this or that program or enforcement matter, it seems to me a very good thing that Congress passed—and President Joe Biden signed into law—the spending package that will keep much of the federal government up and running for Fiscal Year 2024 (see ... Antitrust at the Agencies Roundup: The Supply Chain, Part Deux
Antitrust at the Agencies Roundup: Supply Chains, Noncompetes, and Greedflation
The big news from the agencies may be the lawsuit filed today by the U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) and 16 states against Apple alleging monopoly maintenance in violation of Section 2 of the Sherman Act. It’s an 86-page complaint and it’s just out. I’ll write more about it next week. Two quick observations: First, the ... Antitrust at the Agencies Roundup: Supply Chains, Noncompetes, and Greedflation
The CFPB’s Misleading Slant on Competition in Credit-Card Markets
In yet another example of interagency cheerleading from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Chair Lina Khan recently touted the work of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on payments networks: New @CFPB research reveals that large banks are offering worse credit card terms & interest rates than small banks and credit unions, regardless of credit ... The CFPB’s Misleading Slant on Competition in Credit-Card Markets
