Today, more than ever, companies are forming or joining alliances based on common interests or to realize goals that are difficult to achieve alone. Kelley Drye has experience counseling alliances and designing safeguards to allow them to accomplish their goals without running afoul of the antitrust laws. We counsel trade associations, buyers groups, and individual businesses that participate in joint activities such as benchmarking and information exchanges. Kelley Drye helps clients structure their joint ventures and strategic alliances in accordance with the guidelines issued by the Antitrust Division of the DOJ and the FTC.
Trade Associations
Trade association activities touch on competitively sensitive topics and require guidance from antitrust counsel. Because of our long history with trade associations, Kelley Drye understands the unique legal issues presented by interaction among competitors in the trade association setting. We regularly counsel trade associations on issues ranging from joint lobbying to standard setting. We advise clients on how to implement plans and formulate business strategies without violating the Sherman and FTC Acts.
Benchmarking and Other Information Exchanges
In today’s business environment, firms have more opportunities to interact and exchange information with each other. Appropriate information sharing between firms can help companies improve performance by reducing transaction costs, lowering the costs of business planning, permitting better-informed purchasing decisions, and enabling firms to compete more effectively. Kelley Drye recognizes the risks and pro-competitive benefits of information exchanges. We have helped trade associations, buyers’ consortia, and joint ventures minimize their antitrust risk when exchanging information by using appropriate structures and following basic guidelines.
Back to: Antitrust / Trade Regulation
For further information about Kelley Drye's Antitrust / Trade Regulation - Joint Ventures and Alliances Practice Group, please contact:
Richard E. Donovan
(212) 808-7756
rdonovan@kelleydrye.com
William C. MacLeod
(202) 342-8811
wmacleod@kelleydrye.com
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