Laura Malament advises clients on competition law matters, focusing on merger reviews before U.S., state, and international antitrust enforcement agencies. She also routinely advises clients on a wide range of antitrust topics, including interlocking directorates, information sharing, and integration planning. Laura’s transactional practice encompasses counseling buyers and sellers in domestic and international transactions at various stages of a deal, from premerger planning and due diligence analysis, to Hart-Scott-Rodino filings and extended federal and state investigations, all the way through litigation. Laura also has assisted companies in effectively responding to federal antitrust merger litigation, including successfully defending against the Federal Trade Commission’s attempt to block STERIS Corporation’s acquisition of Synergy Health. Laura has represented clients in the retail pharmacy, consumer products, health care, and fracking industries, among others. She recently served as antitrust counsel to Fairmount Santrol in its merger with Unimin Corporation; to Rite Aid in its sale of its assets and stores to Walgreens Boots Alliance and later to Albertsons; and to Newell Brands in its $16 billion acquisition of Jarden Corporation. Laura is a member of the American Bar Association (Antitrust Section) and most recently was a contributing editor for the second edition of the DOJ Civil Antitrust Practice and Procedure Manual. She is also a member of the Virginia State Bar and the District of Columbia Bar. Prior to attending law school, Laura worked as a senior financial analyst at Eli Lilly & Company in Indianapolis, Indiana. She also started and managed her own successful bakery.
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Last week, the U.S. Department of Justice ("DOJ") and Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") issued draft Vertical Merger Guidelines. Vertical mergers combine two or more companies operating at different levels of a supply chain for a related product, e.g., windshields and cars. This is the first (...)
