Litigation partner Bonita Stone appeared on the Lisa Dent Show on WGN Radio, breaking down legal matters related to merger agreements in regards to a grocer merger in the Chicagoland area. Explaining how definitive merger agreements work, Bonita noted that, however, "[a] definitive merger agreement can always be modified based upon what the regulators do and may demand as part of the merger in order to get the approval. It's definite until it's not." In describing her work, she indicated that antitrust scrutiny is an important part of her practice when it comes to merger litigation.
In Bonita's experience, consumer feedback and pressure has an impact on the regulators as they review merger agreements. "The point of the antitrust laws in general are to protect the public and the consumers from anti-competitive effects, which are, among many things, less product choices, higher prices." How that information is used also is important. She added, "[The regulators] are looking at it both from a macro and micro level — high level, low level — they are looking at the marketplace nationally to see what the impact is on competition and they are also going to look granularly by region, by city and by rural area, like a sub-market to see what the impact is in each and every market." Bonita noted that as a result, consumer concern heightens that scrutiny by the regulators.
"Could Kroger and Albertsons merger signal the end of smaller stores in Chicago?," WGN Radio, October 14, 2022
Chicago
