On February 15, 2019, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the agency charged with administering the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (the “HSR Act”), as amended, and its filing requirements, announced the adjusted HSR Act notification thresholds for 2019. The new thresholds are expected to be published in the Federal Register the week of February 18, 2019, and will become effective 30 days after publication.

The HSR Act notification requirements apply to transactions that satisfy the specified “size of transaction” and “size of person” thresholds, and the thresholds are adjusted annually to reflect changes in the U.S. gross national product. The key adjusted thresholds are summarized in the following chart:

Test

2018 Threshold

2019 Adjusted Threshold

Size of Transaction

$84.4 million

$90 million

Size of Party (lower)

$16.9 million

$18 million

Size of Party (higher)

$168.8 million

$180 million

Size of Transaction Where Size of Party Threshold Not Satisfied

$337.6 million

$359.9 million

The new thresholds also apply to certain other HSR Act thresholds and exemptions.

Under the new thresholds, the size-of-transaction threshold will increase from $84.4 million to $90 million. No HSR Act notification will be required if the value of voting securities and assets held as a result of the transaction is below this threshold.

The size-of-parties thresholds of $16.9 million and $168.8 million in either annual sales or total assets will increase to $18 million and $180 million, respectively. For transactions valued at more than $90 million but not more than $359.9 million, no HSR Act notification will be required if the ultimate parent entities of one or both parties to the transaction do not satisfy the applicable size-of-parties thresholds.

Transactions valued at more than $359.9 million (previously $337.6 million) will be reportable regardless of the size of the parties, unless an HSR Act exemption applies.

The new thresholds do not affect the HSR Act filing fees, but the applicable filing fee will be based on the new thresholds as follows: $45,000 for transactions valued at less than $180 million; $125,000 for transactions valued at $180 million or greater but less than $899.8 million; and $280,000 for transactions valued at $899.8 million or more.

The new thresholds will remain in effect until the next annual adjustment, expected in the first quarter of 2020.

It is important to keep in mind that a transaction will not escape antitrust scrutiny simply because the HSR Act’s filing thresholds are not satisfied or because the transaction receives HSR clearance to close. Indeed, the Antitrust Division and FTC each regularly file suits seeking to unwind previously consummated mergers. Approximately 20 percent of all merger challenges brought by the U.S. antitrust agencies in recent years have involved consummated transactions, including one transaction that had previously received HSR clearance. Even small transactions with a purchase price below $10 million have been challenged.

The FTC also announced the revised thresholds for Section 8 of the Clayton Act that prohibit, with certain exceptions, interlocking directorates where one person serves as a director or officer of two competing corporations, if two thresholds are met. Under the revised thresholds, effective when published in the Federal Register, Section 8 may apply when each of the competing corporations has capital, surplus, and undivided profits aggregating more than $36,564,000, and each corporation’s competitive sales are at least $3,656,400.

Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations.

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