U.S. Senators Debate Toughening Cartel Penalties

On November 14, 2013, members of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights heard arguments regarding the effectiveness of current cartel prosecution and punishment strategies in deterring cartel conduct.  In her opening remarks, Senator Amy Klobuchar, chair of the Subcommittee on Antitrust, called price-fixing the most egregious form of antitrust violations.  "Cartels have no other purpose than to rob consumers," Klobuchar stated.

At the hearing, William Baer, assistant attorney general for the Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust Division, highlighted the Division's efforts to prosecute cartels over the last decade. Under the Antitrust Division's recent aggressive enforcement efforts, the DOJ obtained record fines and jail time against corporations and individual corporate officers for cartels conduct.  In 2013, the DOJ obtained $1.02 billion in fines and filed 50 cases against cartels, including