Photo of Jim O’Connell

Jim O’Connell

Jim O’Connell advises clients on their critical antitrust matters, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and other transactions; licensing arrangements and other business practices; government investigations; and litigation. In connection with his merger practice, he also regularly helps clients assess and comply with their obligations under the HSR Act and comparable merger control regimes around the world.

Clients and peers recommend Jim for his knowledge of antitrust law and his ability to provide expert and practical guidance. He is also recommended for his detailed understanding of the people and processes of the U.S. antitrust enforcement agencies, which he applies to help his clients navigate their most critical antitrust challenges successfully and efficiently. Legal 500 has described him as a “well-respected” practitioner who is “well connected with the DOJ” and recognized by clients for his ability to “quickly develop a high level of company-specific expertise.”

Jim has represented clients in a broad range of industries and sectors, including leading companies in the e-commerce, pharmaceutical, medical device, financial services, telecommunications, electronics, cable, broadcast, alcoholic beverages, consumer products, industrial products and heavy manufacturing, energy and natural resources, steel, aerospace, defense, chemicals, gaming, and software industries.

Jim joined Covington after over five years of public service with the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, where he served in several leadership roles, including as Deputy Assistant Attorney General and Chief of Staff. As Deputy AAG, he had responsibility for the Division’s appellate program and for the development of its major legislative and policy positions, such as those regarding intellectual property and the enforcement of Section 2 of the Sherman Act. His duties also included managing the Division’s relations with its enforcement counterparts around the world. This extensive international enforcement experience enables him to provide his clients highly informed and practical assessments of their U.S. and non-U.S. antitrust risks. Prior to his government service, Jim practiced antitrust law at an international New York-based firm.

A frequent speaker and writer on antitrust law and policy issues, Jim has also been a leader in the Antitrust Section of the American Bar Association for many years, serving in such positions as Chair of the editorial board of Antitrust, the Section’s magazine, and as Co-Chair of the Section’s Federal Civil Enforcement Section. He is currently a member of the Section’s leadership Council. He has also testified before the U.S. Congress and the Antitrust Modernization Commission, and he has served as a non-governmental advisor to the International Competition Network, which brings together competition enforcement authorities, academics, and leading practitioners from around the world to foster the development of best practices and encourage convergence on matters of antitrust policy.

Contact:Read more about Jim O’ConnellEmail

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has announced revised thresholds for determining whether transactions need to be filed under the Hart-Scott-Rodino (“HSR”) Act, along with an updated HSR filing fee schedule. The new minimum “size of transaction” notification threshold for acquisitions of voting securities, assets, or controlling interests in non-corporate entities will be $126.4 million, an increase from the prior threshold of $119.5 million. The new thresholds and fee schedule will be effective February 21, 2025, 30 days after their publication in the Federal Register.

The FTC also announced an increase in the maximum daily civil penalty amount for HSR violations from $51,744 to $53,088 for each day of the violation. The new maximum applies to civil penalties assessed on or after January 17, 2025.

Finally, the FTC also announced slightly higher caps for the de minimis exceptions of Section 8 of the Clayton Act, which prohibits certain interlocking directorates between competing corporations. The new Section 8 exception levels became effective on January 22, 2025, when they were published in the Federal Register.

HSR Act Thresholds and Filing Fees

The HSR Act requires parties to certain mergers and acquisitions to notify the FTC and Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and observe a waiting period (usually 30 days) prior to consummating a reportable transaction. The notification thresholds are adjusted annually based on changes in the gross national product, with the new, revised thresholds as follows:Continue Reading FTC Increases HSR Filing Thresholds and Fees, Penalties, and Thresholds Applicable to Board “Interlocks” for 2025

On October 10, 2024, the federal antitrust agencies finalized the most significant changes to the U.S. merger notification regime since the enactment of the Hart-Scott-Rodino (“HSR”) Act in 1976. The Final Rule—which was issued by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) with the concurrence of the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) (together, “the Agencies”)—will significantly increase the burden on companies whose transactions must be notified to the Agencies pursuant to the HSR Act.

The Final Rule will become effective 90 days after publication in the Federal Register, meaning that the expanded filing requirements will take effect no earlier than mid-January 2025.

Although the Agencies significantly scaled back the changes they originally proposed in June 2023, the Final Rule will still fundamentally reshape the HSR process. According to the Agencies themselves, filings in most cases will take additional time to prepare and become much more expensive, which could extend deal timelines.

Notable new requirements include:

  • adding a “supervisory deal team lead” to the individuals from whom transaction-specific documents must be collected;
  • requiring production of certain non-transaction specific documents that analyze competitive overlaps relevant to the Transaction that were provided to the CEO (or CEOs of subsidiaries involved in the transaction) or members of the board;
  • submission of narrative descriptions of each strategic rationale for the transaction and of any horizontal overlaps or vertical relationships between the parties; and
  • providing the most recent year’s sales data for each overlapping product or service between the parties.

The FTC vote to issue the Final Rule was unanimous. The FTC and DOJ each issued press releases to accompany the issuance of the Final Rule, FTC Chair Lina M. Khan issued a statement (joined by Commissioners Rebecca Kelly Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya), and Commissioners Andrew N. Ferguson (here) and Melissa Holyoak (here) each issued a statement as well. Commissioner Holyoak’s statement identifies many of the key differences between the Final Rule and the proposed rule.Continue Reading FTC and DOJ Announce Final Rule Reshaping HSR Filing Requirements

Last summer, the antitrust agencies proposed sweeping changes to the Hart-Scott-Rodino (“HSR”) Act premerger notification form and associated rules. Covered in detail here, the proposed changes would significantly increase the time, burden, and costs on merging parties to prepare an HSR filing. The public comment period ended on September…

Continue Reading New HSR Rules Will be Finalized Within Weeks, According to DOJ Official

On October 17, 2023, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) published a report on mergers and acquisitions (“M&A”) in the defense industrial base. The report details the current M&A review process of the Department of Defense (“DOD”) and provides recommendations to proactively assess M&A competition risks.

Currently, DOD’s Industrial Base…

Continue Reading GAO Recommends Increased Guidance for DOD Mergers & Acquisitions Review