Mergers, Algorithms and Market Power: Highlights from the ABA Spring Meeting 2026

The ABA 2026 Antitrust Spring Meeting gathered antitrust lawyers and practitioners – some 3,500 of them – for 70 panels in Washington, D.C. Host Bill Batchelor reports back along with Skadden antitrust/competition partners Evan Kreiner and Aurora Luoma. Drawing out the central themes from the conference, they cover the latest in merger control — from the CMA's "4 Ps" framework to the EU's revised guidelines and the fate of the FTC's expanded HSR form — as well as cartel enforcement trends including AI-driven investigations and algorithmic pricing, and notable market power developments in digital regulation and social media.💡 Meet Your Host 💡Name: Bill BatchelorTitle: Partner, Antitrust/CompetitionSpecialty: Bill has 20 years of EU and U.K. competition law experience and focuses his practice on investigations, including abuse of dominance, cartels and vertical agreements.Connect: LinkedIn💡 Featured Guests 💡Name: Aurora LuomaWhat she does: Aurora covers competition law, including international merger control, antitrust investigations, state aid and sectoral regulation. She is based in London.Organization: SkaddenWords of wisdom: “The UK CMA has been rapidly shifting its approach to merger control enforcement in the past 18 months or so. What we heard at the ABA conference was a continued emphasis from the CMA officials on its shift to what it calls its "4 Ps" framework. So, that's greater predictability, pace, process and proportionality in merger review.”Connect: LinkedInName: Evan KreinerWhat he does: Evan is an experienced litigator in high-stakes antitrust trials against government regulators and private plaintiffs. He is based in New York.Organization: SkaddenWords of wisdom: "On the substance, people were quite interested in Judge Boasberg's evaluation and analysis, both the market that Instagram and Facebook – Meta's products that were challenged by the FTC – participate in, as well as how Judge Boasberg considered whether or not Instagram and Facebook have market power. So, market definition in that case was hotly contested.”Connect: LinkedInConnect with Skadden☑️ Follow us on X and LinkedIn.☑️ Subscribe to “Fierce Competition” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app.“Fierce Competition” is a podcast by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, and Affiliates. This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended and should not be construed as legal advice. This podcast is considered advertising under applicable state laws.