Analysis

For Single-Party FTC, Easier Suits May Come With A Cost

By Bryan Koenig

The Federal Trade Commission has ditched its historical multimember, multiparty ethos for a one-party regime in which fewer dissents might make it easier for Chairman Andrew Ferguson to pursue his agenda, but it also forecloses the potential "moderating influence" that comes with winning broad buy-in from commissioners of two parties.

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DOJ Official Says Political Appointees Play Antitrust Role

By Matthew Perlman

Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr. on Thursday defended the role political appointees play in enforcing antitrust laws, saying it would be "blatantly unconstitutional" if U.S. Department of Justice leadership merely deferred to unelected officials.

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DOJ Touts 'Substantial' Ad Tech Fix, Leaves Room For Appeal

By Bryan Koenig

The U.S. Department of Justice walked a fine line between hailing a Virginia federal judge's newly unsealed decision ordering Google to open up its advertising placement technology dominance, and leaving open the possibility of appealing the judge's accompanying rejection of its request for a breakup.

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Joe Gibbs Racing Demands Sanctions For Deleted Texts

By Hayley Fowler

Joe Gibbs Racing LLC wants its former competition director sanctioned for allegedly failing to preserve key evidence after he deleted text messages with the owner of a rival NASCAR team where he is now employed as chief motorsports officer.

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2nd Circ. Pauses Nielsen Order In Cumulus Tying Case

By Nadia Dreid

The Second Circuit has put on hold a preliminary injunction ordering the Nielsen Co. to offer its national ratings data separate from its local offerings after the company argued that the lower court changed the terms of the injunction after the Second Circuit approved it the first time.

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FTC Puts Fertitta's $17.6B Caesars Buy Under The Microscope

By Nate Beck

The Federal Trade Commission is seeking more information about Fertitta Entertainment's proposed $17.6 billion buyout of Caesars Entertainment, extending review of the deal proposed in May, according to a Thursday regulatory filing.

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Rail Giants Point To Shipper Support For $85B Merger

By David Aaro

Droves of companies that rely on freight in their daily business have recently thrown their support behind Union Pacific Corp.'s planned $85 billion merger with Atlanta-based Norfolk Southern Corp. in filings with a federal board being asked to approve the tie-up.

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FDIC Pitches Plan For Faster Bank Merger Reviews

By Jon Hill

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. moved Thursday to revamp its procedures for vetting bank mergers, floating a package of proposed changes that could speed up the agency's reviews for many transactions and lead to fewer getting held up over competition concerns.

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EU Antitrust Chief Says AI Competition Mitigates Risk

By Matthew Perlman

Europe's top antitrust enforcer raised concerns Thursday about the need to regulate artificial intelligence companies, while a top U.S. official said enforcers need to hear more about potential collaborations on AI safety before deciding if they're problematic.

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CMA Probes Paint-Makers' Giant $25B Merger Plan

By Irene Madongo

The Competition and Markets Authority said it is considering the effects on competition in the U.K. of plans by AkzoNobel, the owner of Dulux paints, and Axalta Coating Systems to merge in a transaction that seeks to create a $25 billion company.

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Motorists Get OK To Distribute £92.75M In Antitrust Case

By Sophia Dourou

The Competition Appeal Tribunal on Thursday approved a plan for distributing settlements totaling £92.75 million ($123.9 million) to motorists in class action claims against vehicle shipping companies over delivery charges.

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7th Circ. Questions Illinois' Out-Of-State Liquor Delivery Ban

By Lauraann Wood

The Seventh Circuit seemed unsure Thursday whether it should back a district court decision tossing two wine collectors' constitutional claim against an Illinois law barring out-of-state retailers delivering alcohol to in-state customers, questioning the state's underlying reasoning for the ban.

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SpaceXAI, Apple Must Show Texas Judge Antitrust Deal Terms

By Dorothy Atkins

A Texas federal judge has ordered Elon Musk's companies and Apple Inc. to provide him with a copy of their recent settlement for in-camera review after OpenAI Inc. demanded to look over the agreement and argued its terms may undermine the antitrust allegations SpaceXAI LLC is still pursuing against OpenAI.

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'Bad Middle School Art' Tests Penn State's Counterfeit Bid

By Ivan Moreno

A Third Circuit panel appeared reluctant Thursday to treat all of Vintage Brand's retro Penn State merchandise as counterfeit, even as the judges expressed skepticism about the print-on-demand retailer's broader bid to overturn a jury verdict finding that its unlicensed use of university marks infringed Penn State's trademarks.

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Judge Won't Toss Cannabis Co. Rival Suit, Criticizes AI Misuse

By Carolina Bolado

A Florida federal judge on Wednesday denied a medical marijuana company's bid to get a rival's suit dismissed, called the company's motion to dismiss "sloppy lawyering at best and an AI hallucination at worst," and warned the company's in-house counsel against continued chatbot misuse.

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Orrick Hires Google Ad Tech Litigator, Kressin Powers Partner

By Jack Rodgers

Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP has hired an attorney from Kressin Powers LLC who previously served as a senior litigation counsel in the U.S. Department of Justice, where he helped represent the government in its antitrust suit against Google's alleged ad monopolization practices.

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How FTC's $20B Amazon Suit May Shake Up Ad Enforcement

Gonzalo Mon at Kelley Drye discusses the significance of the Federal Trade Commission's recent suit against Amazon for allegedly overcharging advertising customers more than $20 billion, the company's potential defenses, and the context of rapidly evolving digital advertising technology.

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Senior Lawyers Survey: Tell Us About Your Career

How are senior lawyers adapting to evolving career paths and emerging technologies? Share your perspective in this five-minute survey.

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Analysis

Attys 'Itching' To Join Congressional Probes Of Trump Admin

By Phillip Bantz

Efforts to recruit high-powered lawyers to Capitol Hill to potentially lead congressional committee probes into the various dealings of President Donald Trump's administration are gaining momentum as Democrats push to retake control of Congress in the quickly approaching midterm elections.

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Roundup

Taxation With Representation: Davis Polk, Latham, Sullivan

By Zak Kostro

In this week's Taxation With Representation, a group backed by Michael Dell's family office and Sequence Holdings acquires a majority interest in The Baldwin Group, May Mobility merges with a blank check company, and Infineon Technologies sells its memory chip business to Winbond Electronics.

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Ex-Wis. Judge Keeps License Amid ICE Conviction Appeal

By Ryan Boysen

The ex-Wisconsin judge convicted of obstructing an ICE arrest will remain an attorney in good standing while she appeals, after the Supreme Court of Wisconsin declined to suspend her law license.

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Richards Layton Litigator Selected For Chancery Seat In Del.

By Rose Krebs

A Richards Layton & Finger PA attorney has been nominated by Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer to serve on the bench of the nationally important Chancery Court, a venue that adjudicates some of the biggest corporate law cases.

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Judge Questions Whether 'Lawfare' Fund Fight Is Really Moot

By Jared Foretek

A Virginia federal judge seemed unlikely to toss a challenge to the Trump administration's nixed "Anti-Weaponization Fund" and tax audit immunity for the Trump family Friday, saying she worries the fund could be revived in a different form down the road.

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Chief US District Judge In SC To Take Senior Status Oct. 1

By Courtney Bublé

Chief U.S. District Judge Timothy Cain of the District of South Carolina has informed the president that he will be taking semiretired status on Oct. 1, according to an update posted Friday by the federal judiciary.

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Roundup

GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

By Michele Gorman

Starbucks settled a high-profile discrimination suit with Florida over its diversity, equity and inclusion policies, agreeing not to use race- or sex-based goals in hiring and promoting. And the SEC floated changing how publicly traded companies seek shareholder input, including promising to end one pathway for shareholders to place their proposals on corporate ballots. These are among the stories in corporate legal news you may have missed in the past week.

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Reed Smith Defends Docs Production In Ex-Atty's Bias Suit

By Jake Maher

Reed Smith LLP urged a New Jersey court on Thursday to reject an "impulsive" motion from a former attorney suing it for gender discrimination seeking to strike its answer and affirmative defenses.

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Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Kevin Penton

Schemery Zicolello leads this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after a Third Circuit panel ruled that police cannot conduct warrantless strip searches outside of jails or prisons absent consent or an emergency.

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