Nicole Castle
Subscribe to Nicole Castle's PostsNicole L. Castle provides legal counsel on complex civil and criminal antitrust litigation. She regularly represents clients in complex, multidistrict class action antitrust litigation alleging Sherman Act violations. She also defends mergers and acquisitions before the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Nicole counsels clients on strategies for addressing cartel prosecutions and defenses, from the inception of government investigations to the initiation of civil class action litigation. Read Nicole L. Castle's full bio.
Year in Review: Criminal Enforcement by the DOJ Antitrust Division in 2023
By Nicole Castle, Lisa P. Rumin, Paul M. Thompson and Glenna Siegel on Feb 8, 2024
Posted In Cartel Enforcement, DOJ Developments, Mergers & Acquisitions
When it comes to antitrust criminal enforcement, 2023 will be remembered as the year when the US Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Antitrust Division redefined and tested the outer boundaries of its authority. This report looks back at the key events from the DOJ’s year in criminal antitrust enforcement. Here’s a glimpse of what’s inside: Despite...
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Proposed Merger Guidelines Outline Fundamental Change of Approach to Merger Investigation and Enforcement
By Nicole Castle, Jon B. Dubrow, Noah Feldman Greene, Gregory E. Heltzer, Joel R. Grosberg, Raymond A. Jacobsen, Jr., Lisa P. Rumin, Ryan Tisch and Stephen Wu on Jul 25, 2023
Posted In DOJ Developments, FTC Developments, Mergers & Acquisitions
Mergers and acquisitions will continue to face strong headwinds at the Federal Trade Commission and the US Department of Justice under new proposed Merger Guidelines released on July 19, 2023. The Proposed Guidelines embody the antitrust agencies’ aggressive posture toward merger enforcement under the Biden administration. This On the Subject highlights the most significant changes...
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2023 Regulatory Forecast: Antitrust & Competition
By Nicole Castle, Lesli Esposito and Gregory E. Heltzer on Jan 10, 2023
Posted In Consumer Protection/Privacy, DOJ Developments, FTC Developments, Mergers & Acquisitions
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the US Department of Justice (DOJ) pursued aggressive antitrust and competition enforcement agendas this past year and show no signs of slowing down in 2023. Prepare for the year ahead by reviewing our 2023 Regulatory Forecast for the antitrust and competition space. Click the links below to download a...
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Third Circuit: “Rigorous Analysis” Required for Class Certification in Antitrust Cases
By Lisa P. Rumin, Nicole Castle and Stephen Wu on May 21, 2020
Posted In Private Litigation
The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently concluded in In re Lamictal Direct Purchaser Antitrust Litigation that a district court’s reliance on average prices to determine class-wide impact was insufficient. Instead, courts must conduct a rigorous analysis of the facts, evidence and expert testimony at the class certification stage of litigation. Access Full Article
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Close Scrutiny for Class Settlements Where Plaintiff Attorneys Take Lion’s Share
By Nicole Castle, Michelle Lowery, Matt Evola, Stephen Wu and McDermott Will & Emery on Jan 27, 2020
Posted In Cartel Enforcement, Private Litigation
Two recent US antitrust class action settlements drew additional scrutiny from federal judges, showing that the allocation of settlement funds between a proposed class and their attorneys will be carefully reviewed for fairness to class members.
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Obtaining Class Certification in the United States
By McDermott Will & Emery, David L. Hanselman, Jr. and Nicole Castle on Oct 31, 2019
Posted In Private Litigation
Developments in antitrust class actions over the past year highlight the critical role that the certification decision plays. In the United States, the denial of class certification “may sound the ‘death knell’ of the litigation on the part of plaintiffs.” To obtain class certification, plaintiffs must satisfy the four requirements in Rule 23(a) of the...
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The Latest: New DOJ Antitrust Division Policy Makes Compliance Programs More Critical than Ever
By Nicole Castle and Paul M. Thompson on Jul 16, 2019
Posted In Cartel Enforcement, DOJ Developments
What Happened: Last week, the Antitrust Division reported that it has changed its Justice Manual to state that it will consider antitrust compliance at the charging stage in criminal antitrust investigations, instead of waiting for plea negotiation or the sentencing stage. Previously, the Antitrust Division had granted leniency only to the first whistleblower to come...
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THE LATEST: DOJ Distinguishes ‘No-Poach’ Agreements
By Matt Evola and Nicole Castle on Mar 14, 2019
Posted In DOJ Developments, Private Litigation
WHAT HAPPENED: The Department of Justice filed a Statement of Interest in three related cases in the Eastern District of Washington yesterday dealing with alleged “no-poach” (or non-solicitation) agreements between franchisors like Carl’s Jr, Auntie Anne’s and Arby’s and their franchisees. In the statement, the DOJ distinguished between “naked” no-poach agreements between competitors and the...
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New York Proposes Revised Regulations for Health Care Collaborations
By Nicole Castle on Aug 27, 2014
Posted In Healthcare Antitrust
Today, New York health regulators proposed revised rules that would allow health care providers to merge or cooperate with one another without being subject to federal or state antitrust scrutiny. The state’s Department of Health proposed regulations establishing a process for entities to obtain a Certificate of Public Advantage (COPA) pursuant to Public Health Law...
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Detroit Nurses Object to Sixth Circuit Reviewing Class Certification Decision
By Nicole Castle on Oct 15, 2013
Posted In Cartel Enforcement, Healthcare Antitrust, Private Litigation
On October 11, 2013, the plaintiffs in the Detroit nurses litigation who have accused Detroit-area hospitals of conspiring to suppress their wages opposed VHS of Michigan, D/B/A Detroit Medical Center’s (DMC) petition to the Sixth Circuit for leave to appeal the district court’s decision granting class certification. DMC had asked the Sixth Circuit to do...
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