Debevoise & Plimpton LLP

Co-Chair of firm's Commercial Litigation Group and Antitrust Group

Michael Schaper is Co-Chair of the firm’s Commercial Litigation Group and of the Antitrust Group. He focuses his practice on various types of complex civil litigation, including antitrust litigation, merger challenges and antitrust counseling, as well as intellectual property disputes. He is ranked by Chambers USA (2026) for Antitrust in New York, where clients note that “Michael is very responsive and provides practical and straightforward guidance,” and is recommended for Antitrust by The Legal 500 US (2026), which has previously described him as “extremely knowledgeable and client-focused.”

Mr. Schaper has been involved in numerous antitrust litigations, representing both plaintiffs and defendants in merger, monopolization, unfair pricing practices and price fixing cases. He has also extensively advised clients regarding pricing and distribution practices, as well as potential Section 2 claims against competitors.

Mr. Schaper regularly writes on antitrust issues. He is co-author of a chapter on U.S. Merger Control in the Media Sector in The Merger Control Law Review, the antitrust chapter of PLI’s Healthcare M&A Answer Book and has also authored numerous articles on antitrust and related topics.

Mr. Schaper joined the firm in 2001 and became a partner in 2011.

Mr. Schaper is a member of the Antitrust Section of the American Bar Association and the Association of the Bar of the City of New York.

He received a J.D. in 2001 from the University of Chicago Law School, where he received the Edwin F. Mandel Award for outstanding contribution to the school’s clinical education program. He received a B.A. magna cum laude from Tufts University in 1998.