Proposed Changes to the HSR Merger Filing Process: In-House Counsel View

The U.S. antitrust agencies have recently proposed changes to the HSR merger filing process, broadening the scope of review beyond consumer and competitive effects to workers and other non-competition factors. Merging parties would also be required to prepare written responses to questions related to the transaction, bringing the U.S. more into line with filing requirements in certain foreign merger control regimes like the EU. The additional volume and scope of information contained in merging parties’ HSR filings would also allow the antitrust agencies to potentially apply more rigorous scrutiny of proposed transactions at an earlier stage because the information provided likely will take considerable time for the agency to review. This panel will discuss how in-house counsel is navigating these changes. Featuring: Kirstie Nicholson, Global Competition Counsel, BHP Gil Ohana, former Senior Director, Antitrust & Competition, Cisco Roman Reuter, Senior Counsel, International Competition Affairs, Deutsche Telekom AG Moderator: Chris Wilson, Partner, Gibson Dunn