Legal Affairs: ABA Section of Antitrust Law to hold spring meeting in D.C.

What does the relationship between technology and privacy mean for competition policy and consumer protection? How do mergers affect innovation? What do international enforcement leaders see as the antitrust policies and priorities for the future? These questions and many more will be addressed by competition and consumer protection lawyers, economists, business leaders and government officials at the American Bar Association Section of Antitrust Law Spring Meeting to be held March 30- April 1 at the JW Marriott Hotel and National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Among the many high-level guests and government speakers scheduled to participate in the conference are: U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia; Assistant Attorney General Christine Varney; Federal Trade Commission Chairman Jon Leibowitz and Commissioners Julie Brill, William Kovacic, Edith Ramirez and J. Thomas Rosch; Judges Douglas Ginsburg and Vaughn Walker; and many others. Panels will focus on international antitrust issues and consumer protection developments, and include representatives from the Antitrust Division at the U.S. Department of Justice, the Bureau of Consumer Protection at the Federal Trade Commission, the Competition Office at the European Commission, and the National Association of State Attorneys General. Additionally, top enforcers from international enforcement agencies; executives from Google, Microsoft Corp., HP, GE and other companies; academics; and leaders at antitrust law firms will serve as panelists. Program highlights include the following (programs take place at the JW Marriott unless otherwise noted): "Agency Update with the Antitrust Division DAAGs"-- The deputy assistant attorneys general of the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division -- Katherine Forrest, Scott Hammond, Sharis Pozen and Joseph Wayland -- will discuss the latest in civil enforcement, cartel cases and policy initiatives. "The Next Chapter: The FTC Speaks Again on Intellectual Property"-- Speakers -- including Edith Ramirez, FTC commissioner -- will discuss the FTC's recently released follow-up to its first report, "To Promote Innovation: The Proper Balance of Competition and Patent Law and Policy." "Making Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges" -- Bryan Garner and Antonin Scalia, associate justice of the United States Supreme Court, will discuss their book, "Making Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges." "Chair's Showcase Session: Competition and Consumer Protection in the Web 3.0 World" -- Panel 1: "Technology and Privacy Issues" will discuss "Privacy by Design" (building privacy into technology from the start) and its effects on consumer protection and competition policy. Speakers include Hon. Julie Brill, commissioner of the FTC. Panel 2: "Legal and Social Policy Issues" will discuss the Section 2 and international antitrust ramifications of Internet-related markets. Bruno Lasserre, president of the French Autorité de la concurrence, will be one of the speakers. "Hot Topics" -- Competition and consumer protection law is often determined in litigation and in the newly created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. What are the important current cases and how are they expected to shape competition law in the future? What are the prospects for the players and owners one week before the preliminary injunction hearing in Brady v. NFL? And what can we expect from the new federal agency? Will the CFPB and special advisor Elizabeth Warren be able to make markets for consumer financial products and services work for Americans? Speakers include: Michael Boudin, chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit; William Kovacic, commissioner of the FTC; and Leonard Kennedy, general counsel, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. "Agency Update from the Bureau Directors"-- The directors of the FTC's Bureau of Competition, Bureau of Economics and Bureau of Consumer Protection -- Richard Feinstein, Joseph Farrell and David Vladeck -- will discuss issues facing the commission as well as each bureau's priorities. "Enforcers Roundtable: Traditional Interview and Enforcers"-- International enforcement heads, including Jon Leibowitz, chairman of the FTC; Eduardo Peréz-Motta, president of the Comisión Federal de Competencia in Mexico; Christine Varney, assistant attorney general at the U.S. Department of Justice; James Donahue, chair of the National Association of Attorneys General Antitrust Task Force; and Joaquín Almunia, commissioner for competition at the European Commission, will answer questions regarding their policies and priorities. Published: Fri, Mar 25, 2011