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Webinar: Targeting Big Tech: The Antitrust Push Against Big Tech
Over the past 5 years there has a been an increasing focus and push at both the federal and state level to use the antitrust laws to attempt to restrain technology companies and their alleged anticompetitive power and growing power over consumers’ everyday life. Those attempts, however, have run into the “consumer welfare” standard, that has guided antitrust law for more than 40 years with a focus solely on whether alleged actions will result in higher prices to consumers. This session will explore the current issues posed by “Big Tech”, whether these issues actually cause harm to consumers, whether existing laws are sufficient to address potential competition concerns, and whether changes are necessary to the current antitrust laws.
Presented by the Antitrust & Trade Regulation Section
About the Presenters
Robert Hauberg, Senior Counsel, Baker Donelson (Moderator)
As former chair of the firm’s Government Enforcement and Investigations practice group, Robert concentrates his practice in antitrust, securities, False Claims Act and RICO litigation and white collar crime, including congressional investigations and internal investigations.
He has handled dozens of grand jury investigations, criminal trials, civil trials involving mergers, price fixing, anticompetitive conduct, financial institutions, RICO, false claims by government contractors, whistleblowers, and bribery of public officials. Before private practice, Robert served as a federal prosecutor: AUSA in DC; senior official in the Antitrust Division (Communications and Finance Section) and Criminal Division (Fraud Section, Dallas Bank Fraud Task Force) of DOJ.
Robert is chair of the Federal Bar Association Antitrust and Trade Regulation Section. Previously he served as chair of the District of Columbia Bar’s Antitrust and Consumer Law Community and the American Bar Association’s Antitrust Section Committees on Compliance and Ethics and on Financial Institutions.
James Tierney, Partner, Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
Jim served in the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division for more than 25 years, the last 10 of which he ran the Technology & Financial Services section (formerly the Networks and Technologies Section or Net Tech) that oversaw the review, investigation and litigation of every major strategic technology transaction and conduct issue, including those involving the big 5 tech industry leaders. Reaching beyond just technology, Jim also oversaw matters in the areas of financial services, securities industries, and professional associations.
Jim brings this vast experience to Orrick’s large technology clients and advises them on navigating the tricky waters of government investigations of business activities with antitrust implications like mergers, joint ventures, and single-firm conduct. He knows how the DOJ will view proposed transactions, what issues are likely to trip up a deal or investigation and has relationships throughout the DOJ to get things done. And while Jim served as head of Technology & Financial Services, he worked closely with his counterparts in competition agencies around the world and is able to draw on those invaluable relationships in foreign jurisdictions. His ability to anticipate problems that he saw while sitting on the other side of the table has allowed him to successfully gain merger clearance for Microsoft’s acquisition of GitHub and Cisco’s acquisition of Viptela, as well as resolving numerous technology matters for AT&T, Cerence, eBay, Netflix, Sonos and others.
Eric Grannon, Partner, White & Case LLP
Eric helps clients with antitrust matters, including civil and criminal defense as well as counseling for mergers and acquisitions, settlements of pharmaceutical patent litigation, and strategic planning. Since 2001, he also has helped clients with concerns under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and other anti-corruption issues. Eric began at the firm as a summer associate in 1997 and has been a partner since 2007.
For clients with needs outside Eric’s areas of specialization, he often serves as a relationship partner, ensuring that the client receives the firm’s best work and advice, efficiently and cost-effectively. In that role, Eric also works to ensure that a client’s work streams create opportunities for attorneys at White & Case in line with the client company’s values.
A former prosecutor, Eric returned to White & Case after serving as Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) in 2003-04, where he helped formulate US antitrust enforcement policy and manage the civil and criminal investigations and court cases brought by the Antitrust Division. He ended his DOJ service with a detail as a Special Assistant US Attorney in the District of Columbia, trying twenty bench and jury trials as lead counsel.
Dana Vogel, Competition, Innovation & Privacy Unit Chief, Civil Litigation Division, Office of the Attorney General
Dana Vogel currently serves as the Unit Chief Counsel for the Competition, Innovation & Privacy Unit within the Consumer Protection & Advocacy Section of the Arizona Attorney General’s Office. Dana works on and oversees antitrust matters as well as data breach and Arizona’s Fintech Sandbox program. These antitrust matters include the Generic Drug Pharmaceuticals litigation alongside other State Attorneys General, the Facebook antitrust litigation alongside other State Attorneys General and the FTC, and the Google litigation alongside other State Attorneys General and the DOJ. Dana has also participated in Arizona-specific antitrust investigations and litigation such as the investigation into whether dental suppliers were illegally preventing a new entrant from entering the market. Dana has also worked on Class Action Fairness Act matters in the US Supreme Court and the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth, Sixth, and Third Circuit.
Dana joined the Arizona Attorney General’s Office in 2013 as an Assistant Attorney General in the Antitrust Unit of the Civil Litigation Division. She made a name for herself within the office for her antitrust expertise and her drive to help Arizona consumers, becoming Antitrust Unit Chief Counsel in 2019. Later, data breach and the Fintech Sandbox program were added to the Antitrust Unit, creating the Competition, Innovation & Privacy Unit. She joined the Attorney General’s Office after graduating cum laude from Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University.
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- FBA Member: $0
- Nonmember: $75
Live Captioning: Closed captioning is available for all virtual webcasts.
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CLE
CLE: 1 CLE Credit (60min state) / 1.2 CLE Credit (50min state)
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