Judge Vows Full Review Of Baby Bell Merger Deals By MARK ANDERSON Wall Street Journal
July 12, 2006 12:12 p.m. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB115271882068104714.html?mod=home_whats_news_us WASHINGTON -- U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan promised that he will conduct a full and independent review of two Justice Department antitrust consent decrees that allowed the merger of AT&T Inc. with SBC Communications and Verizon Communications Inc. with MCI. "This court has an independent obligation," Judge Sullivan said at the beginning of an all-day hearing on the consent decrees. The judge said he was reviewing whether the antitrust agreements fully addressed public-interest concerns about the mergers. "I have doubts about that," he said. Judge Sullivan's review stems from a challenge lodged by telecommunications competitors to the Baby-Bell giants by companies Comtel and Actel. The judge is working under expanded power Congress gave the courts in the Tunney Act of 2004 to scrutinize Justice Department antitrust pacts with companies. Judge Sullivan's review is limited to whether the remedies in the consent decree adequately address the government's challenges to the merger terms. The judge is not reviewing whether the mergers as a whole are in the public interest. His actions could indicate increased scrutiny of other pending merger deals, including the proposed marriage of AT&T and BellSouth Corp. The judge said the hearing may conclude with him being satisfied that the government crafted an appropriate consent decree to address the anticompetitive fallout from the original merger proposals. He added he may, at future hearings, take testimony from independent expert witnesses and government officials, prompting a Justice Department attorney to say the law doesn't require that extensive a review. Judge Sullivan said he reads Congress' revision of the Tunney Act as giving the court a mandate to independently question the Justice Department. "The court has to consider these factors itself," he said. The two mergers at issue were completed in 2005. The AT&T and BellSouth proposed pact is currently undergoing extensive regulatory and antitrust review. ================================ George Antunes, Political Science Dept University of Houston; Houston, TX 77204 Voice: 713-743-3923 Fax: 713-743-3927 antunes at uh dot edu Reply with a "Thank you" if you liked this post. _____________________________ MEDIANEWS mailing list [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
