On July 9, 2021, President Biden issued an Executive Order, in which he described the nation’s antitrust laws as the “first line of defense against the monopolization of the American economy” and encouraged the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) to “curtail the unfair use of non-compete clauses and other clauses or agreements that may unfairly limit worker mobility.” Until recently, the FTC had not issued any formal guidance on its plans to act upon the President’s Order, but has informally signaled enhanced attention and scrutiny of non-competition agreements, including by holding a two-day workshop in December 2021, titled “Making Competition Work: Promoting Competition in Labor Markets,” where industry leaders and professionals presented panels on antitrust and labor issues.
Now, however, the FTC is beginning to act in accordance with the President’s Executive Order. On June 14, 2022, the FTC published an administrative complaint challenging an acquisition by Arko Corporation (“Arko”) and its subsidiary GPM Investments LLC (“GPM”) to purchase 60 gasoline and diesel fuel outlets from Corrigan Oil Company (“Corrigan”) as anticompetitive because of the inclusion of certain non-compete provisions in the asset purchase agreement. All 60 fuel outlets that are part of the purchase are located in Michigan and Ohio. However, as part of the $94 million transaction, Corrigan agreed not to compete in the sale, marketing, and supply of gasoline and diesel fuel in the areas surrounding...
By Andrew Chung Oct 9 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump asked the US Supreme Court on Friday to revive his dismissed lawsuit against his 2016 Democratic rival Hillary Clinton accusing her of cons...