Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST NEWS: Service Corporation International seeks FTC approval to divest additional Maryland cemetery, (Jun 18, 2014)

By Greg Hammond, J.D.

The FTC has announced a 30-day public comment period on an application by Service Corporation International (SCI) to sell funeral and cemetery assets, pursuant to a December 2013 proposed order settling charges that SCI’s acquisition of Stewart Enterprises, Inc. would be anticompetitive (In re Matter of Service Corporation International, Docket No. C-4423, File No. 131-0163).

In its current application, SCI is requesting FTC approval for the divestiture of Parkwood Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland, to Parkwood Memorial Association, Inc., which is owned by Guy N. Saxton and John L. Yeatman. SCI has previously sought the Commission’s approval to divest other assets to Saxton and Yeatman, such as Pleasant View Memory Gardens in Kearneysville, West Virginia and Hillcrest Memorial Gardens in Annapolis, Maryland. According to the application, Parkwood Memorial Association will be a strong and effective competitor in the local market, and Saxton and Yeatman have the necessary expertise to successfully operate the business.

As previously reported, SCI settled anticompetitive FTC charges by agreeing to divest 53 funeral homes and 38 cemeteries to ensure funeral home and cemetery services competition is maintained across the U.S. SCI was already the largest provider of funeral and cemetery services when it proposed the $1.4 billion acquisition of Stewart, the second-largest funeral and cemetery provider with 217 funeral homes and 141 cemeteries.

Public comments may be submitted to the Commission until July 17, 2014. Written comments should be submitted to: FTC Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Washington, DC 20580. Comments may also be submitted electronically.

Companies: Service Corporation International; Stewart Enterprises, Inc.; Parkwood Memorial Association, Inc.

News: Antitrust