The State Antitrust Enforcement Venue Act of 2021 is a proposed
antitrust
Competition law is the field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Competition law is implemented through public and private enforcement. It is also known as antitrust l ...
bill in the
United States Congress. The legislation was introduced in the
House of Representatives by
Ken Buck (
R-
CO) as H.R. 3460 on May 21, 2021. Companion legislation was introduced in the
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
by
Mike Lee (R-
UT) as S. 1787 on May 24, 2021.
The legislation would prevent antitrust lawsuits filed by multiple
state attorneys general (state AGs) from being consolidated or transferred to a separate venue at the request of a company. Proponents of the bill argue that the current law helps companies accused of
anti-competitive conduct by allowing suits to be consolidated or transferred in a more favorable venue at their request.
On June 14, 2022, the Senate passed the legislation by voice vote.
History
The legislation was introduced days after
Google filed to transfer an antitrust suit from the
Texas Attorney General's office and fourteen other state AGs to its home court in
San Francisco,
California.
In June 2021, a bipartisan coalition of 52 state AGs wrote a letter to Congress in support of the legislation.
Lina Khan, chair of the
Federal Trade Commission
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. The FTC shares jurisdiction ov ...
(FTC), urged members of the Senate to support the legislation in February 2022. Buck, who introduced the legislation in the House of Representatives, argued that states "should have the same benefit that is already afforded to federal antitrust enforcers — to select and remain in their preferred venue".
Provisions
The legislation would allow antitrust lawsuits filed by state attorneys general to remain in their original court district, rather than be transferred or consolidated elsewhere. With the exception of suits filed by a
federal agencies, antitrust lawsuits filed in multiple federal court districts can be consolidated in a single venue at a litigant's request.
If passed, the State Antitrust Enforcement Venue Act of 2021 would create a carve-out for state AGs from the
Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) akin to the relevant exemption for federal agencies.
Voting history
In June 2021, the
House Judiciary Committee
The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, a ...
in favor of advancing H.R. 3460 to the House floor by a 34–7 margin. On September 23, 2021, the
Senate Judiciary Committee voted to advance the legislation to a full vote in the Senate by voice vote.
On June 14, 2022, the Senate passed the legislation unanimously.
Buck, who introduced the House version of the bill, praised the Senate's vote, describing it marking "the beginning of a new era of antitrust reform and proof-of-concept for a bipartisan reform coalition of conservatives and progressives".
Legislative history
See also
*
American Innovation and Choice Online Act
*
Open App Markets Act
*
United States antitrust law
References
{{Joe Biden
United States proposed federal antitrust legislation
Proposed legislation of the 117th United States Congress
United States antitrust law