Fierce Competition

Cartels may be as old as “Adam Smith’s smoke-filled room,” but in today’s world, they’re employing sophisticated tools like algorithms and AI. Enforcers continue to target price-fixing, bid-rigging and other potential antitrust violations.

Skadden attorneys Bill Batchelor (partner, Brussels and London) and James Fredricks (partner, Washington, D.C.) highlight what’s changed 一 and what hasn’t 一 when it comes to cartel enforcement. They compare and contrast prosecutorial priorities and methods on both sides of the Atlantic. “Prevention,” as Bill explains, “still remains far, far better than the cure.” Tune in for their insight and guidance to corporate counsel who may be navigating these waters.

Name: Bill Batchelor

What he does: Bill Batchelor has 20 years of EU and U.K. competition law experience and focuses his practice on conduct investigations, including abuse of dominance, cartels and vertical agreements. He regularly represents clients on EU and global merger control matters and litigation, and provides counsel on distribution and collaboration agreements in complex and highly regulated industries, such as health care, financial services, insurance, media and entertainment, and gambling, among others.

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: “We may have been slightly slow to pick up no-poach as an area of cartel interest, but we’re speeding up over in Europe. I think the main headlines in terms of the enforcement trends are: traditional cartels are still very much part of the enforcement focus.”

Connect: LinkedIn

Name: James Fredricks

What he does: James Fredricks counsels and defends clients on all types of antitrust investigations and prosecutions, as well as other complex and multijurisdictional actions brought by government enforcers. Previously, he served as an antitrust prosecutor at the U.S. Department of Justice for over two decades.

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: “Just a couple of weeks ago, a jury returned a verdict against a couple of defendants in Savannah, Georgia, for fixing the prices of concrete, rigging bids for concrete, allocating customers for concrete. The legal theory that underpinned it was about as straightforward of a case of per se conduct as they come. No one should think that the government has abandoned its traditional prosecutorial priorities in this space.”

Connect: LinkedIn

☑️ Follow us on X & LinkedIn.

☑️ Subscribe to Fierce Competition on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favorite podcast app.

Fierce Competition is a podcast by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, and Affiliates. This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended and should not be construed as legal advice. This podcast is considered advertising under applicable state laws.

In the United States, United Kingdom and the European Union, sports leagues — from soccer to golf to ice skating — are testing the boundaries of antitrust and competition laws.

Skadden attorneys Bill Batchelor (partner, Brussels and London), Karen Lent (partner, New York) and Vikram Pandit (associate, Brussels) consider the intersection of sports and competition law on both sides of the Atlantic. Courts in all these jurisdictions are grappling with high-stakes questions concerning conspiracy, commercialism and college athletes. The cases that Bill, Karen and Vikram highlight involve a “super” soccer league in Europe, the NCAA’s amateurism model, salary caps for soccer in England and more. Tune in to hear their insights on  how future rulings could change the game.

Name: Vikram Pandit  

Title: Associate, Antitrust/Competition at Skadden

Specialty: Vikram is an associate in Skadden’s global Antitrust/Competition Group based in Brussels. 

Connect: LinkedIn

Name: Bill Batchelor

What he does: Bill Batchelor has 20 years of EU and U.K. competition law experience and focuses his practice on conduct investigations, including abuse of dominance, cartels and vertical agreements. He regularly represents clients on EU and global merger control matters and litigation, and provides counsel on distribution and collaboration agreements in complex and highly regulated industries, such as health care, financial services, insurance, media and entertainment, and gambling, among others.

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: “It's interesting to see that some of these cases going all the way to the highest court in Europe are from individual players. So, it's not big litigation between huge organizations. An individual player can go to their local labor tribunal and that tribunal can refer a question of law directly up to the ECJ, and that can be the source of a new ruling on competition law that can affect a block of 450 million people.”

Connect: LinkedIn

Name: Karen Lent

What she does:  Karen Lent is co-head of Skadden’s sports practice and head of the New York office’s antitrust/competition practice, representing a wide variety of clients in antitrust, sports and other complex litigation matters at both the trial and appellate court levels. She also provides general antitrust counseling.

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: “Certainly the kinds of rules — how many players do you have on the field, how many referees, those sorts of things — are the rules of the game, and if someone tries to challenge those from an antitrust perspective, they'd quickly be dismissed ... But if there are rules about how leagues deal with suppliers or customers, those would then be subject to the rule of reason. They would not be exempt from the antitrust laws.”

Connect: LinkedIn

☑️ Follow us on X & LinkedIn.

☑️ Subscribe to Fierce Competition on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favorite podcast app.

Fierce Competition is a podcast by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, and Affiliates. This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended and should not be construed as legal advice. This podcast is considered advertising under applicable state laws.

In this episode of the "Fierce Competition" podcast, Skadden attorneys Tara Reinhart (partner, Washington, D.C.), Annie Villanueva Jeffers (partner, New York and Palo Alto) and Justine Haimi (counsel, New York) explore the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC’s) landmark ban on noncompete agreements. They discuss the FTC's rationale for the rule, as well as potential implications of the ban for businesses and enforcement challenges it may face. Tara, Annie and Justine point out the likelihood of a preliminary injunction against the rule due to ongoing litigation, and they highlight strategies for employers to navigate this new landscape. The episode emphasizes the FTC's increased focus on labor and worker protection, underscoring the need for companies to monitor the situation given its potential widespread impact on antitrust enforcement and employment practices.

Name: Tara Reinhart

Title: Partner, Antitrust/Competition at Skadden

Specialty: Tara is head of the Antitrust/Competition Group in Skadden’s Washington, D.C. office. She focuses on civil litigation and government investigations, with an emphasis on complex antitrust litigation and international cartel probes.

Connect: LinkedIn

Name: Annie Villanueva Jeffers

What she does: Annie is a partner in the Labor and Employment Law and Artificial Intelligence Groups at Skadden. She counsels clients on a broad range of employment matters, including employment-related issues arising out of U.S. and multinational corporate transactions, executive employment agreements, restrictive covenant agreements, reductions-in-force, discrimination charges and lawsuits, collective bargaining agreements and internal investigations.

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: On the FTC rule banning noncompetes: “It seems likely that this rule will be enjoined by the courts. I don't have a crystal ball, but that seems likely, in my opinion.”

Connect: LinkedIn

Name: Justine Haimi  

What she does: Justine is a counsel in the Antitrust/Competition Group at Skadden. She represents clients in connection with the antitrust aspects of litigation, mergers and acquisitions and advisory matters. She has worked with clients across a diverse range of industries, including health care, medical devices, insurance, consumer goods, telecommunications, energy and pharmaceuticals.

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: On the FTC rule banning noncompetes: “This rule is really a bombshell, but in retrospect, it was years in the making.”

Connect: LinkedIn

☑️ Follow us on Twitter & LinkedIn.

☑️ Subscribe to Fierce Competition on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favorite podcast app.

Fierce Competition is a podcast by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, and Affiliates. This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended and should not be construed as legal advice. This podcast is considered advertising under applicable state laws.

Illumina announced in December that it would divest GRAIL, the result of a merger challenge with many twists and turns both in the United States and in Europe. 

In this episode of the “Fierce Competition“ podcast, Skadden attorneys Julia York (partner, Washington, D.C.), Ingrid Vandenborre (partner, Brussels) and Michael Sheerin (counsel, New York) talk about the three-year Illumina-GRAIL saga. In particular, they focus on three key areas of the Fifth Circuit's ruling that appear most likely to impact future merger enforcement efforts in the United States.

Tune in to hear about Illumina’s divestment of GRAIL, how it got there and what we can learn from this winding legal battle.

Name: Julia York 

Title: Partner, Antitrust/Competition at Skadden   

Specialty: Julia has represented numerous global corporations in various industries, including pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, energy and financial markets, in both litigation and transactional matters. She currently serves as the vice chair of the ABA Antitrust Section’s Antitrust Law Development Committee and regularly appears on discussion panels on antitrust issues relevant to the pharmaceutical industry. Julia also actively works on pro bono matters, including representing various amici curiae on briefs submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court and U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal.

Connect: LinkedIn

Name: Ingrid Vandenborre   

What she does: Ingrid is the partner in charge of Skadden’s Brussels office and co-head of Skadden’s European Antitrust/Competition practice. Her practice focuses on EU and international merger control and competition law enforcement.   

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: “It's kind of hopeful to hear that there's a limit to the nascent competition criteria.”  

Connect: LinkedIn

Name: Michael Sheerin   

What he does: Michael serves as counsel in the New York office of Skadden’s Antitrust/Competition Group where he represents clients in a broad range of antitrust transactional, litigation and advisory matters. His representations span a diverse range of industries, including technology, health care, life sciences, manufacturing, consumer goods, sports, entertainment and professional services.  

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: “Offering a remedy upfront, particularly a very compelling remedy, can really be a helpful strategy before you get to court.”  

Connect: LinkedIn

☑️ Follow us on Twitter & LinkedIn.

☑️ Subscribe to Fierce Competition on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app.

Fierce Competition is a podcast by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, and Affiliates. This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended and should not be construed as legal advice. This podcast is considered advertising under applicable state laws.

Until recent years, there was barely a single collective claim in Europe, but now, things have changed.

This episode of the “Fierce Competition” podcast features Skadden partners Bill Batchelor, Bruce Macaulay and Matt Martino, who explore class action lawsuits in the U.K. and U.S., focusing on the evolving role of the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT), a new collective actions tribunal in the U.K., which is currently handling 48 live proceedings, involving a range of unique claims.

Differences in the certification process in both jurisdictions are analyzed, as well as the impact of funding agreements, and much more. Tune in as this episode serves as a rich resource for understanding the intricacies of class action lawsuits on different sides of the Atlantic.

Name: Bill Batchelor   

Title:   Partner, Antitrust/Competition at Skadden

Specialty: Bill Batchelor has 20 years of EU and U.K. competition law experience and focuses his practice on conduct investigations, including abuse of dominance, cartels and vertical agreements. He regularly represents clients on EU and global merger control matters and litigation, and provides counsel on distribution and collaboration agreements in complex and highly regulated industries, such as health care, financial services, insurance, media and entertainment, and gambling, among others.

Connect:  LinkedIn

Name: Bruce Macaulay   

What he does:  Bruce is a partner in the International Litigation and Arbitration Group in Skadden’s London office. He focuses on complex cross-border litigation, competition law disputes and international arbitration.

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom:  On key themes coming out of the CAT at the moment: “We are seeing a number of claims that are pushing the boundaries of what could be termed a competition breach.”

Name: Matt Martino   

What he does: Matt is a partner in the Antitrust/Competition, Sports, and Litigation Groups in Skadden’s New York office. He represents a wide variety of clients in antitrust litigation and advisory matters, as well as those pertaining to all aspects of sports law.

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: “Unlike Canada and what it sounds like is developing a bit in the U.K., the U.S. courts will take a very rigorous analysis at the class certification stage, particularly on the predominance requirement of the class action rule.”

Connect: LinkedIn 

☑️ Follow us on Twitter & LinkedIn.

☑️ Subscribe to Fierce Competition on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app.

Fierce Competition is a podcast by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, and Affiliates. This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended and should not be construed as legal advice. This podcast is considered advertising under applicable state laws.

This episode of the “Fierce Competition” podcast features Skadden antitrust/competition partners Ken Schwartz (New York), Tara Reinhart (Washington, D.C.) and Aurora Luoma (London), who dig into the complexities behind increased antitrust scrutiny for private equity transactions. They shed light on the regulatory focus on market roll-ups, delve into recent litigation and unpack potential political motivations behind the new merger guidelines. 

The Skadden team provides a guide for private equity firms in this unpredictable regulatory landscape and highlights the importance of being litigation-ready and effectively communicating the benefits of their deals. The bottom line? In the midst of regulatory obstacles and intense scrutiny, diligent preparation paired with a solid economic analysis is a private equity firm's best ally.

Name: Kenneth Schwartz

Title: Partner, Antitrust/Competition at Skadden

Specialty: Ken Schwartz represents clients in antitrust transactional and advisory matters. He has worked in a diverse range of industries, including agriculture, airlines, chemicals, consumer products, defense and government contracting, energy, entertainment, financial services, health care, insurance, media, medical devices, natural resources, private equity, pharmaceuticals, retail and telecommunications.

Connect: LinkedIn 

Name: Tara Reinhart

What she does: Tara Reinhart is head of the Antitrust/Competition Group in Skadden’s Washington, D.C. office. She focuses on civil litigation and government investigations, with an emphasis on complex antitrust litigation and international cartel probes.

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: “When you're looking at the industries that the agencies have been concerned about with roll-ups, there seem to be so many pro-competitive benefits to talk about, and maybe at private equity firms, you're not used to speaking so much about that, but you should.”

Connect: LinkedIn 

Name: Aurora Luoma

What she does: Aurora Luoma is a partner in Skadden’s Antitrust and Competition Group. She has a broad practice covering key areas of competition law, including international merger control, antitrust investigations, state aid and sectoral regulation. She particularly focuses on complex global mergers in the EU and U.K.

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: “Engagement with regulators is increasingly important from an early stage.”

Connect: LinkedIn

☑️ Follow us on Twitter & LinkedIn.

☑️ Subscribe to Fierce Competition on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app.

Fierce Competition is a podcast by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, and Affiliates. This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended and should not be construed as legal advice. This podcast is considered advertising under applicable state laws.

Around the world, regulators are rapidly evolving their approaches to merger control. The landscape has become increasingly complex and fragmented. Transactions that were once straightforward now take much longer and are more likely to be challenged. 

Responding to a perception that their old tools were not working as well as perhaps they should, regulators have introduced a wave of new thresholds and regimes, and also are exploring novel theories of harm and demanding larger volumes of evidence to support mergers.

This premiere episode of the “Fierce Competition” podcast features three partners from Skadden’s Global Antitrust and Competition Group. Host Ingrid Vandenborre (Brussels) is joined by David Wales (Washington, D.C.) and Andrew Foster (Hong Kong) to discuss how companies can navigate this new era of merger control.

Name: Ingrid Vandenborre

Title: Partner, Antitrust/Competition at Skadden

Specialty: Ingrid Vandenborre is the partner in charge of Skadden’s Brussels office and co-head of Skadden’s European antitrust/competition practice. Her representations focus on EU and international merger control and competition law enforcement.

Connect: LinkedIn  

Name: David Wales

What he does: David Wales is head of Skadden’s North American antitrust/competition practice. He is recognized as a leading antitrust lawyer by several legal publications and has over 25 years of experience in both the private and public sectors. 

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: “[The FTC and DOJ] really are pushing the envelope on the substance, when it comes to vertical issues, potential competition, conglomerate theory.” 

Connect: LinkedIn 

Name: Andrew Foster

What he does: Andrew Foster is head of Skadden’s international competition practice for Asia Pacific. He advises on competition regimes around the globe, focusing on China, the EU and the U.S.

Organization: Skadden

Words of wisdom: “We’re getting much more attention and interest from regulators to try to make sure that they’re capturing every kind of transaction that they think needs to be seen.” 

Connect: LinkedIn 

☑️ Follow us on Twitter & LinkedIn.

☑️ Subscribe to Fierce Competition on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app.

Fierce Competition is a podcast by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, and Affiliates. This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended and should not be construed as legal advice. This podcast is considered advertising under applicable state laws.

From Skadden, Fierce Competition is a podcast for corporate counsel of multinational organizations who face the challenges of navigating antitrust policy and enforcement around the world. This is not another U.S. or Eurocentric antitrust podcast. We’re covering global antitrust issues, impacting the most complex industries.

In today's fast-paced global economy, staying informed about antitrust developments is more crucial than ever. From digital antitrust, to the uncertainty of enforcement, to the disparity with how jurisdictions handle mergers, Skadden’s global Antitrust and Competition Group will provide you a nuanced analytical perspective of what's happening in this ever-evolving landscape, one episode at a time. 

If you’re enjoying Fierce Competition, be sure to subscribe in your favorite podcast app so you don’t miss any future episodes. Additional information about Skadden can be found at Skadden.com.

Fierce Competition is a podcast by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, and Affiliates. This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended and should not be construed as legal advice. This podcast is considered advertising under applicable state laws.