FTC Broadens Scope Of Considerations In Merger Reviews

On September 28, 2021, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced additional changes to its merger review process that Bureau of Competition Director Holly Vedova stated would make the process "more rigorous." In practice, it appears likely that the announced changes will further increase the already substantial burden associated with an in-depth antitrust investigation of a proposed transaction. While a number of the announced changes were technical and simply aligned the FTC's Second Request practices with those of the Department of Justice (DOJ), the FTC also announced that future Second Requests may examine new theories of harm previously not considered during U.S. merger investigations. The announcement from Vedova also injects additional uncertainty into the U.S. merger review process, following a number of recent changes implemented by the DOJ and FTC, including (1) a temporary suspension of grants of early termination that has now lasted 18 months; (2) the