Stephen Wu
Subscribe to Stephen Wu's PostsStephen Wu has nearly 25 years’ experience in defending antitrust litigation in federal courts around the country, defending mergers and acquisitions before the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust Division and State Attorneys General and counseling clients on antitrust compliance issues. Read Stephen Wu's full bio.
New DOJ Task Force to Target ‘Multisided Giants’ in Healthcare
By Stephen Wu, Ashley Fischer, Daniel Powers and Noah Feldman Greene on May 10, 2024
Posted In DOJ Developments, FTC Developments, Healthcare Antitrust, Mergers & Acquisitions, Monopolization/Abuse of Dominance
The US Department of Justice’s (DOJ) announcement of the formation of a new healthcare task force signals an even stronger emphasis on addressing competition issues in the healthcare industry. Large, multisided platforms involved in multiple sectors (e.g., insurance companies acquiring physician practices and/or essential healthcare IT and data services) are a key target for enforcement....
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The Fix Is In – Key Learnings From Recent Vertical Merger Challenges
By Jon B. Dubrow, Stephen Wu, Matt Evola and Bailey K. Sanders on Feb 9, 2024
Posted In DOJ Developments, FTC Developments, Healthcare Antitrust, Mergers & Acquisitions
Vertical mergers are inherently more difficult for the government to litigate than horizonal mergers. After not litigating a vertical merger case since the 1970s, the Federal Trade Commission and the US Department of Justice have recently tried several matters. In this Westlaw Today article, Jon Dubrow, Stephen Wu, Matt Evola and Bailey Sanders discuss key...
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Proposed Merger Guidelines Outline Fundamental Change of Approach to Merger Investigation and Enforcement
By Nicole Castle, Jon B. Dubrow, Noah Feldman Greene, Gregory E. Heltzer, Joel R. Grosberg, Raymond A. Jacobsen, Jr., Lisa P. Rumin, Ryan Tisch and Stephen Wu on Jul 25, 2023
Posted In DOJ Developments, FTC Developments, Mergers & Acquisitions
Mergers and acquisitions will continue to face strong headwinds at the Federal Trade Commission and the US Department of Justice under new proposed Merger Guidelines released on July 19, 2023. The Proposed Guidelines embody the antitrust agencies’ aggressive posture toward merger enforcement under the Biden administration. This On the Subject highlights the most significant changes...
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DOJ Signals Heightened Scrutiny on Information Exchanges and Competitor Collaborations
By Noah Feldman Greene, Gregory E. Heltzer, Ashley Fischer and Stephen Wu on Feb 15, 2023
Posted In DOJ Developments, Healthcare Antitrust
WHAT HAPPENED On February 3, 2023, the US Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Antitrust Division announced the withdrawal of three policy statements related to antitrust enforcement in healthcare. Although the withdrawn statements focus on healthcare, DOJ’s decision to withdraw these statements will have broad impacts across industries. The three policy statements, issued in 1993, 1996, and 2011, relate to competitor collaboration...
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Recent Treasury Department Report Emphasizes Fostering Competition in Labor Markets
By Joshua W. Eastby and Stephen Wu on Mar 15, 2022
Posted In Agriculture, Cartel Enforcement, DOJ Developments, Healthcare Antitrust, Joint Ventures/Competitor Collaboration, Monopolization/Abuse of Dominance
Continuing the recent string of actions across the Biden administration in response to the July 2021 Executive Order on “Promoting Competition in the American Economy,” on March 7, 2022, the US Treasury Department (Treasury) released a report titled “The State of Labor Market Competition,” and on March 10, 2022, the US Departments of Justice (DOJ)...
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2020 Health Antitrust Year in Review
By Ashley Fischer, Katharine M. O'Connor, Stephen Wu and Michelle Lowery on Jan 19, 2021
Posted In DOJ Developments, FTC Developments, Healthcare Antitrust, Joint Ventures/Competitor Collaboration, Mergers & Acquisitions, Monopolization/Abuse of Dominance, Private Litigation
The federal antitrust enforcement agencies brought three hospital merger challenges and three criminal antitrust enforcement actions in healthcare in the past year. Combined with the incoming Democratic administration, healthcare antitrust enforcement is likely to remain strong in 2021. Our Health Antitrust Year in Review: Examines specific antitrust challenges and enforcement actions that impacted hospitals and...
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Health Antitrust Litigation Update for Providers | 2020
By Michelle Lowery, Katharine M. O'Connor, Stephen Wu, Joshua W. Eastby and Ashley Fischer on Nov 13, 2020
Posted In DOJ Developments, FTC Developments, Healthcare Antitrust, Joint Ventures/Competitor Collaboration, Mergers & Acquisitions, Monopolization/Abuse of Dominance, Private Litigation
In 2019, the total number of antitrust cases filed against providers dropped to 20 after the 2018 bump (27 cases). In the latest Health Antitrust Litigation Update for Providers, we discuss what kinds of cases were brought over the past two years and how they were decided, and what cases warrant particular attention in 2020. Read...
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Top Takeaways: Permissible Provider Collaborations During COVID-19 and Beyond
By Ashley Fischer, Katharine M. O'Connor and Stephen Wu on May 27, 2020
Posted In DOJ Developments, FTC Developments, Healthcare Antitrust, Mergers & Acquisitions
If you missed our latest webinar, enjoy the replay below and learn more as we provide highlights on competitor collaborations, avoiding violations in labor markets, provider M&A and partial acquisitions. Competitor Collaborations Antitrust compliance remains an important priority in the US. While companies have been engaged in finding creative solutions to COVID-19 challenges and regulators...
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Third Circuit: “Rigorous Analysis” Required for Class Certification in Antitrust Cases
By Lisa P. Rumin, Nicole Castle and Stephen Wu on May 21, 2020
Posted In Private Litigation
The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently concluded in In re Lamictal Direct Purchaser Antitrust Litigation that a district court’s reliance on average prices to determine class-wide impact was insufficient. Instead, courts must conduct a rigorous analysis of the facts, evidence and expert testimony at the class certification stage of litigation. Access Full Article
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FTC and DOJ Issue Joint Antitrust Statement Regarding COVID-19 and Competition in Labor Markets
By Ashley Fischer and Stephen Wu on Apr 14, 2020
Posted In Healthcare Antitrust
The COVID-19 pandemic has placed additional stressors on labor markets, particularly for healthcare workers and essential employees. While recognizing that employers, recruiters and staffing agencies may need—and be allowed to—cooperate in unprecedented ways to address current needs, on April 13, 2020, the US Department of Justice and US Federal Trade Commission issued a joint statement...
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