Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, WORTH NOTING: Other Antitrust and Trade Regulation developments, (May 15, 2026)

By WK Editorial Staff

A periodic roundup of other items of interest to the Antitrust and Trade Regulation community.

ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS NEWS: Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md), Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee and Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, asked Paramount Skydance Corporation CEO David Ellison to answer questions regarding the company’s dealings with the Trump Administration during the Paramount-Skydance merger investigation by the FCC. The representatives are concerned about the risks posed by the media giant and the connections between Ellison and the Trump Administration. Specifically, the letter states that Ellison has positioned his growing media empire to serve the political interests of Trump, included settling a meritless lawsuit against 60 Minutes and installing an “ombudsman” tasked with enforcing the President’s editorial agenda. Ranking Members Raskin and Pallone are demanding that Paramount Skydance CEO Ellison provide detailed responses and produce records and communications relevant to questions of potential executive and foreign interference in the proposed merger of Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery.

ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS NEWS: The European Commission has unconditionally approved the proposed acquisition by Suzano S.A. of Kimberly Clark IFP NewCo B.V., finding that the transaction would raise no competition concerns in the European Economic Area. Suzano is a leading global producer and supplier of wood pulp, specifically of bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp ('BEKP'). Kimberly-Clark IFP produces and sells tissue products for personal and professional use. BEKP is a main component for the production of tissue paper products. The Commission found that the transaction would not significantly reduce competition in the internal market. In particular, competing tissue producers in the EEA will continue to have access to sufficient BEKP supplies. Moreover, the market investigation confirmed that EEA tissue producers, who routinely source BEKP from multiple suppliers, face no significant barriers for switching BEKP suppliers, which reduces the risk that tissue producers competing with Kimberly-Clark IFP could be disadvantaged, for example through higher BEKP prices. Finally, the Commission found that even if the merged entity disadvantaged its tissue competitors, Kimberly-Clark IFP's limited market position in the EEA would prevent it from profitably increasing its sales and hence not justify such a strategy.

ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS NEWS: The European Commission has decided not to accept a referral request under Article 22 of the EU Merger Regulation submitted by Portugal, which was later joined by Spain and Italy, to assess the acquisition of Siemens Logistics GmbH of Germany by Vanderlande Industries B.V. of the Netherlands. The transaction concerns airport logistics services, in particular baggage handling. The acquisition does not meet the notification thresholds set out in the EUMR. Although the transaction was initially submitted for regulatory approval to the German competition authority in 2024, a subsequent restructuring of the transaction meant that Germany no longer had jurisdiction.

ANTITRUST—N.D. Tex.: The federal district court judge in Amarillo, Texas has granted in part and denied in part motions to file documents under seal in a suit field by cheer competition promoters who had sued the predominate industry entity and others for exclusionary practices (Open Cheer & Dance Championship Series LLC v. Varsity Spirit, LLC, No. 2:23-cv-00155-Z (N.D. Tex. May 8, 2026)).

ANTITRUST NEWS: Twenty-five professors at California universities are urging state legislators to reject a sweeping change to the state’s antitrust law, warning that pending legislation is a threat to consumers, ordinary business practices, and the overall economy. The letter argues that AB 1776 (Aguiar-Curry) would constitute a severe and untested departure from established antitrust principles, would expand restraint of trade liability from agreements to single-firm conduct, and explicitly reject decades of federal precedent that provided stability and predictability to businesses and courts alike.

ANTITRUST NEWS: Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, Washington Attorney General Nick Brown, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, and New York Attorney Letitia James hosted a press conference highlighting the critical antitrust enforcement work state attorneys general have been doing, and to make the case that states need more resources to keep doing it. As the Department of Justice Antitrust Division has lost key leadership and career attorneys and federal priorities shifted away from protecting consumers, state attorneys general stepped up to protect Americans from illegal mergers and monopolies, the AGs said. The conference also highlighted the need for increased funding to bring the cases usually brought or supported by the federal government.

ANTITRUST NEWS: Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA) introduced the Competitive Prices Act, which would make it easier to hold companies accountable for illegally raising prices, restricting wages, or creating artificial shortages of goods and services. The bill works to remedy the impact of misguided court decisions over the past 20 years, which have undermined the ability of both federal enforcement agencies and private parties to sue corporations for violating antitrust laws.

ANTITRUST NEWS: Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy, and Consumer Rights, has introduced legislation to restore integrity and independence to federal antitrust enforcement. The Correcting Lapsed Enforcement in Antitrust Norms for Mergers Act (CLEAN Mergers Act) would restore the integrity of antitrust enforcement by requiring divestiture of mergers consummated during Trump’s second term, valued at over $10 billion absent proof they did not harm competition. It would also direct federal agencies to reexamine mergers consummated during Trump’s second administration for evidence of improper or politically influenced review. U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Chris Murphy (D-CT), and Mazie Hirono (D-HI) are original cosponsors of the bill.

AGENCY NEWS: The Australia Competition and Consumer Commission has welcomed the Australian Government allocating an additional $67.7 million over four years to further strengthen the ACCC’s competition and consumer law enforcement capabilities.

Attorneys: John True Smithee, Jr (Underwood Law Firm P.C.) for Open Cheer & Dance Championship Series LLC. Michael K. Hurst (Lynn Pinker Hurst Schwegmann LLP) for Varsity Spirit, LLC.

Companies: Paramount Skydance Corporation; Open Cheer & Dance Championship Series LLC; Varsity Spirit, LLC; Suzano S.A.; Kimberly Clark IFP NewCo B.V.; Siemens Logistics GmbH; Vanderlande Industries B.V.;

News: Antitrust CaliforniaNews TexasNews