2017 ABA Spring Meeting Panel Summary: HSR Exemptions: Running Out Of Gas?

The Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") and U.S. Department of Justice ("DOJ") have recently revisited several HSR exemption interpretations and sought penalties from investors relying on others. The Mergers & Acquisitions and Transportation & Energy Industries Committees presented a panel on March 31, 2017 at the ABA Antitrust Section Spring Meeting that addressed these recent developments and examined whether certain exemptions, such as those for acquisitions of investment rental property and warehouses, are especially vulnerable in the energy or any other industry. Karen Kazmerzak of Sidley Austin LLP chaired the panel, which was moderated by William R. Vigdor of Vinson & Elkins LLP. Speakers included Kay Lynn Brumbaugh of Andrews Kurth Kenyon LLP, Steve J. Kaiser of Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, Kara Kuritz, Attorney Advisor in the DOJ's Legal Policy Section, and Kathryn E. Walsh, Deputy Assistant Director of the FTC's Premerger Notification Office ("PNO").