Annual Antitrust CLE Event – 2022

Tuesday, December 6 • 8:00 a.m. – 1:45 p.m. ET

Troutman Pepper’s antitrust group is excited to offer its annual Antitrust CLE event. Given the focus of the current administration and antitrust agency leadership on changing the goals and application of the antitrust laws, it is already apparent that there is greater uncertainty and that substantive risks are on the uptick. Our U.S. and international presenters will offer an in-depth look at major antitrust-related issues and practical guidance and will provide attendees with tools and information to minimize and manage their risks.

Audience participation during four one-hour panels is encouraged, and attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and engage with presenters during this seminar.

Topics and presenters include:

“New and Improved” Antitrust?

• Daniel J. Boland, Troutman Pepper
• Michael J. Hartman, Troutman Pepper
• Robin P. Sumner, Troutman Pepper

The Biden Administration’s Federal Trade Commission has launched a number of investigations into long-standing pharmaceutical and healthcare related activities and systems. Some of these activities have, historically, been considered efficiency-enhancing. Unrelated to healthcare, the agency is also suing companies claiming that distribution loyalty programs are, in essence, anticompetitive payments to distributors in order to block the manufacturers’ competitors. Will the FTC’s focus on harm to competitors result in meaningful changes in the law or how businesses operate in the United States? How will companies know when loyalty programs cross the line from lawful to unlawful? Under the new paradigm, are the cost-savings generated by conduct that might inhibit competitors even relevant to antitrust analysis?

International Competition Law – Transactions

• Davit Akman, Cassels, Brock & Blackwell (Toronto)
• Gerrit Oosterhuis, Houthoff (Brussels & Amsterdam)
• Barbara T. Sicalides, Troutman Pepper

This international panel will discuss whether or not the world is truly getting smaller. Businesses with international or cross-border operations or considering acquisitions, transactions, or collaborations with companies outside the United States are more frequently encountering antitrust complications. Are active European enforcement agencies and legislation influencing the U.S. and Canadian authorities and politicians? We will update you on the key global antitrust developments and how companies might anticipate and address the related risks.

Hot Topics, Including Antitrust Crimes, Employment Issues, No-Poach, and the Aftermath

• Jason D. Evans, Troutman Pepper
• Megan Conway Rahman, Troutman Pepper
• A. Christopher Young, Troutman Pepper

Fresh from battle with the Antitrust Division in the poultry executives criminal trials and regularly advising clients in civil and criminal matters, this panel of experienced litigators will discuss antitrust developments, what clients need to know and how businesses can address risks going forward. For example, competition in labor markets remains a “hot topic” for government, business, and labor. The antitrust enforcement agencies, consistent with the Biden administration’s “Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy,” continue to use the weapons in their arsenal to challenge activities that they claim enhance the mobility and bargaining power of employees.

A Healthy Dose of Ethics and Antitrust Compliance

• Jeremy Heep, Troutman Pepper
• Samuel D. Harrison, Troutman Pepper

This panel will address professional responsibility and innovation in antitrust compliance programming, including the ethics issues that arise for in-house attorneys in the context of compliance programs and reports of potential violations.