Revised Notification Thresholds And Increased Penalties Under The Hart-Scott-Rodino Act

New reporting thresholds apply to pre-merger notifications filed on or after February 12, 2009, and HSR Act violations will be subject to increased fines.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced revised thresholds for the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (HSR Act) and increased penalties for violations of the HSR Act and other laws enforced by the FTC. The FTC also announced the 2009 thresholds for determining whether parties trigger the prohibition against interlocking directors under Section 8 of the Clayton Act.

Notification Threshold Adjustments

Pursuant to the amendments passed by the U.S. Congress in 2000, the FTC published the revised thresholds for HSR pre-merger notifications in the Federal Register on January 13, 2009. These revised thresholds will become effective on February 12, 2009. Any transaction completed and any HSR pre-merger notifications filed on or after February 12, 2009, must comply with these new