Antitrust Chronicle® – White Collar Defense

Dear Readers,

Competition authorities worldwide investigate and prosecute antitrust infringements criminally.  The U.S. Department of Justice, in particular, has famously imposed substantial fines and prison sentences against alleged conspirators, including those located abroad.  

These efforts are often coordinated with other competition authorities, as many investigations are global in scope. These efforts have recently been magnified: the Department of Justice has launched a so-called Procurement Collusion Strike Force, which seeks to identify and prosecute criminal antitrust conduct in the government procurement sector.  

Given the far-reaching consequences of criminal prosecutions for the companies and individuals involved, criminal antitrust enforcement inevitably raises significant questions of legal principle, alongside significant practical questions, notably with regard to individuals’ willingness to participate in disclosure and leniency programs, where their interests may diverge from that of the companies that employ them. The articles in this edition of the Chronicle assess recent developments in the U.S. and worldwide, both on their own merits and in terms of how they interact with other aspects of antitrust law and policy.

Richard Powers & Alison Goldman open by assessing recent revisions announced by the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice to its leniency policy. In addition to giving greater context about an