International law firm Hogan Lovells announced on Tuesday that it has hired senior lawyer Jennifer Fleury from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission amid a surge in antitrust enforcement activity by the agency.
Fleury joins Hogan Lovells as a partner in its Washington, D.C. office. Previously, she served as deputy chief trial counsel in the FTC’s competition bureau after moving from the U.S. Justice Department in 2022. Notably, she began her career at Hogan Lovells as a senior associate.
At the FTC, Fleury led the agency’s lawsuit that successfully blocked a proposed merger between IQVIA, a healthcare data and analytics firm, and DeepIntent, a healthcare advertising firm owned by Propel Media. The FTC argued that the merger would stifle competition, raise prices for consumers, and harm patients. In December 2023, a Manhattan federal judge sided with the FTC, halting the merger and prompting IQVIA and DeepIntent to abandon the deal shortly thereafter.
Logan Breed, co-leader of Hogan Lovells’ antitrust, competition, and economic regulation practice, praised Fleury’s experience, stating that her insights into the current commission’s enforcement approach and her background in tech-related and healthcare antitrust cases would bring a fresh perspective to the firm. The FTC declined to comment on her departure.
Fleury also participated in the FTC’s efforts to oppose Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, a case the agency lost but has since appealed to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Under President Joe Biden and FTC Chair Lina Khan, the scrutiny of mergers and acquisitions has intensified. A 2022 Reuters analysis revealed that the Biden administration initiated more antitrust challenges in its first two years than either the Obama or Trump administrations did in theirs.
