With COVID-19-related closures rolling in daily, you may have questions about the operating status of the federal government’s antitrust enforcement agencies. Currently, the HSR review process does not seem to be significantly impacted,  although the agencies will not grant a request for early termination during this period (as noted in our recent update, the FTC will again process early termination requests as of March 30, though on a more limited basis and later in the process than historically provided). Unlike the government shutdowns in 2013 and 2018, all FTC and DOJ staff are working full time. In addition, the agencies have implemented a mandatory e-filing system for all HSRs.

Given that the agencies will continue to work full-time and that an e-filing system is in place, we think it is unlikely that there will be significant impact on timing for the vast majority of transactions, particularly where there is no competitive overlap between the transacting companies.

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