Partner John E. Villafranco participated at the 57th Spring Meeting of the ABA Section of Antitrust Law. The meeting, held March 25 - 27, 2009, in Washington, D.C., focused on how antitrust and consumer protection law is (and is not) changing. The conference incorporated over 40 sessions covering all aspects of U.S. antitrust law and provided substantial coverage of consumer protection law and non-U.S. competition law issues. Attendees were given the opportunity to learn about the substantive law developments and the practical skills of handling antitrust risk in the current environment, and, at the same time, discover what the enforcers have in mind for the future.

Mr. Villafranco was a speaker at the session titled “Cross-National Perspectives On Consumer Protection,” where a panel presented a hypothetical consumer protection matter, premised on real cases, as a demonstration of the similarities and differences in approaches, both substantive and procedural, among nations in their regulation of advertising, marketing and privacy.