Pub K
Is Merger Enforcement in Good Health?
Dechert – We have been consistently warning that parties to transactions subject to significant merger investigations were more likely to see the FTC or DOJ sue to block their deal or push them to abandon it prior to being sued. Indeed, last year a full 60 percent of investigations resulted in either a complaint or an abandoned transaction. And in Q3 2022, all concluded investigations resulted in either a complaint or an abandoned transaction. Q1 2023 confirms this was not an anomaly; with one quarter down, neither agency has entered into a single consent in 2023. If you’re a government contractor thinking about a deal, this is something to keep in mind.