Title
Horizontal Merger Guidelines
Author
U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade
Commission
Date
1/01/2005
(Original Publish Date: 4/2/1992)
(Original Publish Date: 4/2/1992)
Abstract
These Guidelines outline the present enforcement policy of the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission (the Agency) concerning horizontal acquisitions and mergers (mergers) subject to section 7 of the Clayton Act,(1) to section 1 of the Sherman Act,(2) or to section 5 of the FTC Act.(3) They describe the analytical framework and specific standards normally used by the Agency in analyzing mergers.(4) By stating its policy as simply and clearly as possible, the Agency hopes to reduce the uncertainty associated with enforcement of the antitrust laws in this area.