Former FTC Bureau of Competition Acting Deputy Director Haidee Schwartz to Join Akin Gump

(Washington, D.C.) – Akin Gump is pleased to announce that Haidee L. Schwartz, former Acting Deputy Director of the Bureau of Competition at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), will join Akin Gump as a partner in its nationally ranked antitrust/competition practice in Washington, D.C.

Since July 2017, Ms. Schwartz has overseen the enforcement of the U.S. antitrust laws and managed investigations across multiple merger divisions in the FTC’s Bureau of Competition as well as the FTC’s Health Care division and Northeast Regional Office. She has directed investigation and litigation teams focused on transactions in various industries, including pharmaceuticals, medical devices, chemicals, energy, technology, health care, consumer goods and retail. Her unique experience of having worked with all of the current FTC commissioners gives her important insight into how the commissioners consider and evaluate matters before them.

Prior to her legal career, Ms. Schwartz worked with an international public affairs firm, where she directed public policy and communications strategies for clients whose mergers and acquisitions were the targets of congressional and regulatory scrutiny.

At Akin Gump, she will focus her practice on all aspects of merger review, federal and state nonmerger investigations, and antitrust counseling to clients across a breadth of industries.

“Through her combination of public service and private practice, as well as her highly successful public affairs work, Haidee has developed in-depth knowledge of antitrust law and the federal agencies that enforce them. Her depth of experience will be very valuable for our clients,” said Akin Gump chairperson Kim Koopersmith. “Haidee’s arrival will further strengthen our top-tier antitrust team and will solidify our position as a premier firm for handling large merger reviews and counseling clients on the competitive aspects of their most pressing business matters.”

“Whether advising on investigations or guiding clients through the merger review process, Haidee brings a distinctive skillset and background that will make her an ideal complement to our strong team. In particular, her intimate knowledge of the Bureau of Competition, coupled with her insights into overseas agencies and trends in antitrust enforcement and litigation, will be especially beneficial for our clients,” said Corey Roush, head of Akin Gump’s antitrust/competition practice.

Ms. Schwartz noted, “With a leading antitrust team backed by top-tier policy and regulatory practices, Akin Gump offers an ideal platform for me to return to private practice and work with clients who face increasingly complex and challenging antitrust issues. The firm has a proven track record of guiding clients through the thicket of the merger review process, whether at the FTC, Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice, or before Congress or other regulatory agencies. I am delighted to join this team and put my skills to work on behalf of the firm’s clients.”

About Haidee Schwartz

Ms. Schwartz began her legal career at another large international law firm, where she represented clients subject to FTC and Department of Justice (DOJ) merger and conduct investigations as well as DOJ criminal investigations. She also represented defendants in FTC and DOJ litigated merger cases, agency conduct investigations and civil litigations; conducted complex antitrust analyses; and provided counseling and policy guidance to clients.

Ms. Schwartz previously worked at the global public affairs firm Powell Tate/Weber Shandwick, directing public policy and communications strategies for corporate clients. Her work involved  developing communication strategies to guide mergers and acquisitions through congressional scrutiny and regulatory reviews involving the DOJ, the FTC, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Transportation.

Ms. Schwartz received her J.D., magna cum laude, from the George Mason School of Law (now Antonin Scalia Law School). She received her A.B. from Duke University.

About Akin Gump’s Antitrust/Competition Practice

Ranked by legal directories Chambers & Partners and Legal 500, as well as prominent industry trade publications, lawyers in Akin Gump’s antitrust/competition practice defend civil and criminal antitrust and consumer protection investigations in the U.S. and Europe, handle antitrust and consumer protection class action cases and merger trials and regularly counsel clients on how to mitigate the risk associated with such investigations and lawsuits. The firm’s lawyers appear regularly before the DOJ, the FTC, state attorneys general and courts around the country on antitrust and consumer protection matters spanning many industries, including health care, energy, pharmaceuticals and intellectual property.

The firm’s antitrust lawyers also focus heavily on mergers and acquisitions, representing buyers, sellers, targets and financial institutions. The firm engages in creative and effective antitrust counseling in all aspects of the merger planning process and has successfully defended merger investigations by developing persuasive, fact-based storylines that have resonated with government enforcement lawyers and economists.

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP is a leading international law firm with more than 900 lawyers in offices throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

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