Keys for Success as an Antitrust Lawyer


Because of the size and complexity of the antitrust practice, from counseling to litigation, most antitrust law is practiced in the U.S. in the government or in larger law firms. A case of any consequence requires large groups of lawyers, often with a wide array of individual expertise. Some lawyers have more experience with criminal grand juries, perhaps being ex-antitrust prosecutors themselves , and have a focus on the criminal side a price-fixing case, for example. A vertical distribution civil case would present a different set of issues and require other expertise. In high technology cases, intellectual property lawyers may need to be involved. Thus, with the myriad of skills involved, antitrust law remains largely the province of larger firms or specialty antitrust litigation boutiques, which themselves still have some size and scope.

Practicing antitrust law is detail oriented and requires a great deal of diligence and hard work. At the same time, to do it well requires something of a strategic and philosophical outlook on business enterprises and the markets within which they operate . You also have to be something of a visionary in the way you think about and solve problems, with a genuine premium placed on thinking outside the box.

To be successful, you must develop an ability to conceptualize quickly and to solve clients problems with business solutions. That requires a great deal of empathy for the clients business people and business drivers. A successful antitrust lawyer can usually not always, but usually accomplish all of a clients objectives, although it might be in a different or unexpected way. Thats the challenge of antitrust counseling: You may need to show a client a different way of doing something that will result in the client accomplishing most or all of its objectives. You want to show the businesspeople that to execute a proposed strategy, for example, they do not need to sacrifice the points they deem important, which could range from their customer communications, to their internal practices, to the way they run factories.

Working well with the facts, understanding whats important, is essential for an antitrust lawyer. Judgments are based upon facts and assumptions, and clients will keep coming back when they realize that your judgments are sound and their interests come first. They need to hear harsh judgments, for example, when a case or conduct is sadly all but indefensible. They need to hear sound judgment on when to settle and when to litigate, with their interests put first. Law firms fail with their clients when they pursue the big lawsuit on a scorched earth basis when it is at the expense of sounder judgment on the expense of litigation and the risks of nonsettlement. Litigation at all costs is a great driver of profits for law firms, but it is a poor substitute for a business judgment in the antitrust field. Clients will keep coming back if they trust and believe in your antitrust advice through their own experience with you.

Practicing antitrust law is very much a lifestyle choice for a lawyer. Antitrust is truly the essence of business, its strategy and pursuit of clear victory. Antitrust lawyers learn what makes a business go, its marketing aspirations, its sales goals, its new products, its competitive strategies. The practice itself requires long hours and can be physically very demanding. But because it involves very directly the very business of the client, it will be important to the client and generally will demand priority.

Because the antitrust lawyer learns the business inside and out, there is quite a bit of travel involved. You go to the clients place of business, get to know the major players and understand not only how the business operates and its place in the market, but why. As a result, it is exciting from a personal development standpoint, and antitrust law remains a very vital practice -- rarely boring and often surprisingly fun.




Inside the Minds Stuff - Inside the Minds. Winning Antitrust Strategies
Inside the Minds Stuff - Inside the Minds. Winning Antitrust Strategies
ISBN: N/A
EAN: N/A
Year: 2004
Pages: 102

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