Federal Trade Commission/Department of Justice Hearings On Single-Firm Conduct to Continue On November 15

The Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Antitrust Division today announced that the latest in a series of joint public hearings designed to examine the implications of single-firm conduct under the antitrust laws will take place on November 15, 2006, in Washington, DC. As previously announced, these hearings will examine whether and when specific types of single-firm conduct may violate Section 2 of the Sherman Act by harming competition and consumer welfare and when they are procompetitive and lawful. The hearings will continue during the coming months.

The panels on November 15 will explore exclusive-dealing arrangements. The sessions will be held at the FTC’s Conference Center at 601 New Jersey Ave., N.W., Washington, DC, Conference Room A.

Further information is provided below:

Exclusive Dealing (9:30 a.m.-12:00 noon):

Jonathan M. Jacobson is a Partner, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, and Commissioner, Antitrust Modernization Commission.

Howard P. Marvel is a Professor of Economics, Department of Economics, The Ohio State University, and a Professor of Law, Michael E. Moritz College of Law, The Ohio State University.

Richard M. Steuer is a Partner, Mayer, Brown, Rowe, & Maw LLP.

Mary W. Sullivan is an Assistant Professor of Accountancy, The George Washington University.

Joshua D. Wright is an Assistant Professor of Law, George Mason University School of Law.

Exclusive Dealing (1:30 p.m.-4:00 p.m.):

Stephen Calkins is a Professor of Law and the Director of Graduate Studies, Wayne State University Law School, Of Counsel, Covington & Burling LLP, and former General Counsel of the Federal Trade Commission.

Joseph Farrell is a Professor of Economics, University of California, Berkeley, and a former Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice.

Benjamin Klein is a Professor Emeritus, Department of Economics, University of California, Los Angeles.

Abbott (Tad) Lipsky is a Partner, Latham & Watkins LLP, and a former Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice.

The public and press are invited to attend all of the hearings. Seating will be on a first-come, first-served basis. Interested parties may submit written comments to the FTC and the Antitrust Division.

Further information about these hearings will be posted on the FTC’s Web site, http://www.ftc.gov/os/sectiontwohearings/index.htm and the Antitrust Division’s Web site, http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/public/hearings/single_firm/sfchearing.htm. Individuals seeking more information on the hearings should contact Patricia Schultheiss, FTC, at section2hearings@ftc.gov, or Gail Kursh, Deputy Chief, Legal Policy Section, Antitrust Division, at singlefirmconduct@usdoj.gov

The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop and avoid them. To file a complaint, or to get free information on any of 150 consumer topics, call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357), or use the complaint form at http://www.ftc.gov. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft, and other fraud-related complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to thousands of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.