LabMD litigation against FTC lingers

Although the Federal Trade Commission won its effort to quash a lawsuit over its probe of LabMD, the now-defunct medical laboratory is still trying to sue three agency employees.

Neill Averitt

The pushback on convenience, resort and junk fees

Unexpected, surreptitious fees in retail transactions — additions like “convenience fees” and “resort fees” — have proliferated wildly over the past 30 years. When they aren’t clearly disclosed at the start of a transaction, their omission can deceive consumers and distort the purchase decision....

Current Issue: 890

DOJ, FTC are more aggressive in reviewing deals — and taking longer

The Federal Trade Commission and the Justice Department have become increasingly aggressive in launching significant merger investigations and those probes are taking longer — an average of 9.6...

Scalia helped shape antitrust law during time on high court

For someone who once advocated for reducing the powers of the Federal Trade Commission and said at one time that antitrust law didn’t make any sense to him, the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin...

As Apple case heats up, McSweeny backs encryption to protect consumers’ data

Well before the battle between Apple and the FBI erupted over whether the company must help law enforcement unlock an iPhone with encrypted information, Federal Trade Commission member Terrell...

SMARTER Act may see progress this year

Congress often doesn’t do much during an election year, but a bill to more closely align the merger review procedures of the two antitrust agencies might be an exception.

Baer, Ramirez to discuss antitrust enforcement before Senate panel

The increase in merger activity in the last few years and Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act are among the topics likely to come up when the antitrust agency chiefs testify before the...

FTC has limited powers over campaign excesses

The Federal Trade Commission has much to say about how businesses act in many aspects of the economy, but not in the biennial dramas called elections.