Deputy Bureau of Competition Director Ann Malester Leaving to Enter Private Practice

Federal Trade Commission Chairman Timothy J. Muris today announced that Ann Malester, Deputy Director of the Bureau of Competition, is leaving the FTC and entering private practice. “During Ann’s distinguished 26-year career with the FTC, her persuasive advocacy and ability to motivate and lead others have won her admirers throughout the FTC and beyond. We are going to miss her,” Muris said.

As deputy director, Malester helped supervise antitrust enforcement activities throughout the agency. From 1991 to 2003, Malester served as the Assistant Director of Mergers I, one of the four merger divisions within the Bureau. She supervised the investigation and litigation of hundreds of mergers and acquisitions during the 1990s. Her division reviewed proposed mergers in a wide range of industries, including the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, and defense and aerospace industries. Under her leadership, the Commission successfully obtained relief for consumers in mergers such as Amgen/Immunex, Pfizer/Pharmacia, Glaxo/SmithKlineBeecham, and Lockheed/Martin Marietta.

Malester participated in a number of the Commission’s leading cases, including two matters that reached the U.S. Supreme Court, FTC v. Ticor Title Insurance Co. and American Medical Association v. FTC. Malester also played a leading role in a number of cases in which the Commission successfully challenged proposed acquisitions in Federal District Court, including FTC v. IMO Industries and FTC v. Alliant Tech Systems.

Malester won numerous awards at the FTC, including the Chairman’s Award, the Brandeis Award for best litigator, and the Presidential Rank Award, which is the highest honor given to federal government executives. Malester also served as the FTC’s liaison with the U.S. Department of Defense and served as the Commission’s representative on the Defense Science Board’s Task Force on Vertical Integration and Supplier Decisions in the Defense Industry.