Justice Dept. and Federal Trade Commission to hold workshops on 2023 Draft Merger Guidelines

The U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will jointly host three public workshops to facilitate public dialogue on the 2023 Draft Merger Guidelines. These workshops will allow for a dynamic discussion about the Draft Guidelines to complement the written public comments now being submitted to the agencies.

The first workshop will take place on Tuesday, September. 5 from 1 to 4:15 p.m. The half-day virtual workshop will feature two panel discussions with former enforcers, academics, economists, and practitioners regarding questions and issues on which public comment will be most useful. The agenda, list of speakers, and instructions to access the livestream will be available on the event page at www.justice.gov/atr/public-workshops-2023-draft-merger-guidelines.

Additional information about the forthcoming workshops, including the agendas and panelists, will be available on the event page as it becomes available.

The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division and the FTC continue to encourage comments from the public on the Draft Guidelines, which may be submitted online now through September 18, at www.regulations.gov/docket/FTC-2023-0043. The agencies will use the public comments to evaluate and update the draft before finalizing the Draft Guidelines.

The agencies protect competition through enforcement of the antitrust laws and other federal competition statutes. The Draft Guidelines describe how the agencies review mergers and acquisitions under the federal antitrust laws. Since 1968, the agencies have issued and revised Merger Guidelines to enhance transparency and promote awareness of how the agencies enforce the law with respect to mergers and acquisitions.

Reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities are available upon request. If you need such an accommodation, please contact the Antitrust Division at Merger.Guidelines.2023@usdoj.gov. Such requests should include a detailed description of the accommodations needed and a way to be contacted more information is needed.