Antitrust

Scope of Practice

Our practice covers the full scope of antitrust and competition law, and brings to bear a team with the experience and knowledge this rich area of law demands.

• Transactions and counseling.

Our lawyers advise clients on complex mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, and other competitor collaborations. We are a leading firm in filing pre-merger notifications in the U.S. and under multi-jurisdictional merger control regimes, and we guide some of the world’s largest and most complex strategic transactions to successful closings. We also help clients strategize about competition law concerns and effective antitrust compliance. Learn more about our antitrust transactions practice, including representative matters.

• Antitrust civil litigation.

Vinson & Elkins enjoys a reputation built on defending bet-the-company claims in governmental actions, putative class actions, and individual claims throughout the country. Our core team of seasoned litigators is prepared to aggressively defend complex, multi-jurisdictional disputes, including claims in state and federal courts, as well as in domestic and international arbitration. We also aggressively represent clients when their businesses are injured by anti-competitive conduct—including winning the first-ever billion-dollar antitrust verdict, netting a $425 million ultimate recovery for our client. Learn more about our antitrust litigation practice, including representative matters.

• Antitrust criminal defense.

Companies and individuals that are targets of grand jury investigations or are accused of price-fixing or other cartel activity face both civil and criminal liability. In addition to its robust antitrust civil litigation team, Vinson & Elkins has a civil litigation team ready to defend complex, multi-jurisdictional disputes and a white-collar criminal law defense practice ready to defend businesses and implicated individuals as they confront antitrust law’s most severe risks. Learn more about our antitrust criminal cartel defense practice, including representative matters.

• Antitrust investigations and regulatory proceedings.

We represent clients before enforcement authorities across the country, like the Federal Trade Commission, the DOJ’s Antitrust Division, federal regulatory agencies, and state attorneys general. Whether clients face informal inquiries, civil investigative demands, or administrative adjudicatory proceedings, Vinson & Elkins’ litigators are ready to help. Learn more about our antitrust investigations practice, including representative matters.

Experienced Team

Our Antitrust team comprises an exceptionally successful collection of lawyers with government and regulatory experience, including former DOJ prosecutors and FTC officials; proven trial lawyers able to effectively defend companies and individuals summoned before grand juries or indicted for alleged antitrust offenses; and transactional-focused professionals with abundant industry knowledge. Our team possesses a deep understanding of the approaches, arguments, and economics necessary to see a transaction through to approval by the appropriate regulatory agencies. Meet our team below.