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Below is a guest post by Dr. Ai Deng, PhD who writes often about issues related to price fixing cartels.  Dr. Deng is at NERA Economic Consultants, and can be reached at ai.deng@nera.com or connect with him on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/aideng/) ********************************************************************* In a recent post, Bob shared his thoughts on the latest DOJ policy that could give credit to companies for their effective antitrust compliance programs.  In this post, I want to…
As I mentioned in my post yesterday (here), the Division’s new policy on incentivizing compliance programs comes after years of lobbying by many in the defense bar and corporate compliance community.  Two of the leading advocates of this change are Ted Banks (Scharf Banks Marmor LLC) and Joe Murphy (Compliance Strategists).  I received a comment from Mr. Banks yesterday, joined in by Mr. Murphy.  With their permission, I am posting their thoughtful remarks: Bob –…
There has been a great deal of publicity surrounding the Antitrust Division’s recent announcement that a corporation involved in a criminal antitrust violation may get credit for an antitrust compliance program if certain conditions are met.  The credit may include a DPA (Deferred Prosecution Agreement: the government reaches a plea agreement with the defendant; files criminal charges in an Information;  and defers the entry of the guilty plea for a period of time.   If the…
      On July 24, 2019 Senators Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), reintroduced legislation to extend whistleblower protection for employees who provide information to the Department of Justice related to criminal antitrust violations. From the Press Release:             “Violations of our antitrust laws hurt consumers, often in the form of less choice and higher prices. Without the help of industry whistleblowers, these sorts of violations often fly under the radar. This legislation incentivizes…
The Antitrust Section of the American Bar Association is hosting an August 1, 2019 teleconference on the Antitrust Divisions new policy on Incentivizing Antitrust Compliance Programs.  Below is an ABA description of the program and I’ve provided a link if you care to register. Wind of Change: The Antitrust Division’s New Guidance for Evaluating Compliance Programs in Criminal Cases 12 PM EDT   August 1, 2019 Recently the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division reversed…
This major news has been extensively covered but in case you missed it: On July 11, 2019, Makan Delrahim announced a major reversal in the Antitrust Division’s treatment of Corporate antitrust compliance programs.  In a speech titled “Wind of Change: A New Model for Incentivizing Antitrust Compliance Programs,” Delrahim stated: “effective immediately, the Antitrust Division will: (1) change its approach to crediting compliance at the charging stage; (2) clarify its approach to evaluating…
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  On July 11, 2019, from 5:30 to 7:45 p.m., the Program on Corporate Compliance and Enforcement will host a speech, A New Model for Incentivizing Antitrust Compliance Programs, given by Makan Delrahim, Assistant Attorney General, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice. AAG Delrahim will announce the Antitrust Division’s new approach to evaluating corporate compliance programs in criminal antitrust investigations. The speech will be followed by a question and answer session with the AAG, as…
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I am a bit obsessed with trying to gain support for a criminal cartel whistleblower statute.  Toward that end, I often comment on the wildly successful SEC fraud whistleblower statute and why I think a cartel whistleblower statute would have equally positive results. A May 24, 2019 Wall Street Journal column by Mengqi Sun and Kristin Broughton (here) reported that: A former orthopedic surgeon in Brazil received an award of more than $4.5 million for raising concerns…
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Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim gave a talk on Friday, May 10, 2019 at an ABA Antitrust Section of Law conference in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The full remarks can be read here. Mr. Delrahim made reference to two policy changes that are in the works involving two key Antitrust Division policies : 1) Corporate Leniency; and 2) Credit for Compliance Programs.  This talk did not indicate what changes may be in store, but Mr. Delrahim’s remarks…
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On Tuesday May 7, 2019, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Roger Alford spoke at the 2019 China Competition Policy Forum in Hainan, China.   Mr. Alford’s prepared remarks can be found here. Mr. Alford’s remarks were largely about agency cooperation in international antitrust enforcement. He discussed the Multilateral Framework on Procedures in Competition Law Investigation and Enforcement (“MFP”).  The MFP strengthened and promoted due process in global competition law enforcement, and helped improve cooperation among competition agencies…