#doj-antitrust

#doj-antitrust

Gail Slater, the top antitrust enforcer at the Justice Department, announced Thursday that she has left her post, just weeks before the agency's next major tech monopoly trial against entertainment giant Live Nation is set to begin. "It is with great sadness and abiding hope that I leave my role as AAG for Antitrust today," Slater posted from her personal X account. Slater thanked the staff of the Antitrust Division and called the role "the honor of a lifetime." In a statement, Attorney General Pam Bondi thanked Slater for her service, but did not directly address questions about what precipitated her departure or who would take over as the acting leader of the Division.

According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and Bloomberg, antitrust enforcers at the Department of Justice (DOJ) wanted to investigate Compass's recently closed acquisition of Anywhere, but they were blocked by senior officials who wished to green-light the deal. Sources familiar with the situation told both WSJ and Bloomberg that Gail Slater, the head of the DOJ's antitrust division, wanted to undertake an extended review of the proposed merger for potential anticompetitive effects.

Although the US Department of Justice (DOJ) holds the power to block mergers that it deems to go against antitrust laws, Trump's influence over the DOJ can't be overlooked. While Paramount previously seemed to establish a good relationship with the president, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos may have done the same recently. Sarandos "spoke with the president in the last couple of weeks in a confab that lasted about two hours," The Hollywood Reporter reported on Sunday, citing "multiple" anonymous sources.