Ilana Kowarski

Washington, D.C.

Senior Mergers and Acquisitions Reporter at MLex Market Insight

New @mlexclusive senior mergers and acquisitions reporter, former @usnews journalist. Proud alum of @columbiajourn and @uchicago.

Articles

A hundred days into US FTC under new chairman, don't call leadership regulators

1 week ago | mlex.com | Mike Swift |Ilana Kowarski

By Mike Swift and Ilana Kowarski ( May 9, 2025, 23:08 GMT | Comment) -- Last week marked 100 days since the start of Andrew Ferguson’s leadership of the US Federal Trade Commission, and while the new chairman has frequently talked the talk of a full-throated Trump populist, the walk the commission is walking in some ways isn’t all that different from from the FTC under the GOP-reviled populist Lina Khan.@font-face (font-family:"Cambria Math"; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0;...
Constellation received second request from US DOJ on Calpine buy

1 week ago | mlex.com | Ilana Kowarski

By Ilana Kowarski ( May 6, 2025, 15:44 GMT | Insight) -- Power company Constellation Energy’s proposed acquisition of rival Calpine Corp. has elicited a second request from the US Department of Justice's Antitrust Division, Constellation’s CEO announced today.Power company Constellation Energy’s proposed acquisition of rival Calpine Corp. has elicited a second request from the US Department of Justice's Antitrust Division, Constellation’s CEO announced today....
Common antitrust defenses by top US firms merit scrutiny, US FTC’s Meador says

1 week ago | mlex.com | Ilana Kowarski

By Ilana Kowarski ( May 5, 2025, 22:15 GMT | Insight) -- US Federal Trade Commissioner Mark Meador today urged skepticism toward antitrust defenses frequently presented by major American companies, such as vertical deal efficiencies arguments, innovation claims and national champion theories.US Federal Trade Commissioner Mark Meador is urging skepticism toward antitrust defenses frequently presented by major American companies, such as vertical deal efficiencies arguments, innovation claims...
US FTC’s Meador says mindset must shift to vigorous enforcement

2 weeks ago | mlex.com | Khushita Vasant |Ilana Kowarski

By Khushita Vasant and Ilana Kowarski ( May 1, 2025, 22:40 GMT | Insight) -- Mark Meador, the newest member of the Federal Trade Commission, today called on US enforcers to shift their antitrust enforcement mindset to be more concerned about underdeterrence than overdeterrence when it comes to anticompetitive conduct, while advocating for a greater level of certainty to excuse a merger that eliminates competition.
US FTC Chairman Ferguson distances himself from predecessor Khan

3 weeks ago | mlex.com | Ilana Kowarski

By Ilana Kowarski ( April 24, 2025, 22:39 GMT | Comment) -- US Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson has faced criticism from the US business community for his alleged support for heavy-handed regulation, but one newspaper recently crossed a line. The Wall Street Journal compared him to his predecessor, Lina Khan.
Former Omnicom-IPG alliance in spotlight as US FTC reviews merger

1 month ago | mlex.com | Ilana Kowarski

By Ilana Kowarski ( April 16, 2025, 17:12 GMT | Comment) -- Global advertising agencies Omnicom Group and Interpublic Group, which are trying to combine in a deal that faces scrutiny from the US Federal Trade Commission, were founding members of a now-defunct ad industry alliance that the FTC’s chairman said warranted “a look” from law enforcers.Global advertising agencies Omnicom Group and Interpublic Group, which are trying to combine in a deal that faces scrutiny from the US Federal Trade...
Applying to Law School

1 month ago | usnews.com | Cole Claybourn |Ilana Kowarski |Nathan Hellman

At each of these schools, 50% or more of grads with full-time jobs at law firms worked for large companies. At least 59% of students who received grants at these schools got enough to cover half of tuition or more. Explore data on LSAT scores and acceptance rates for the highest-ranked law schools. Aim for late summer or early fall in case you need to take the test multiple times. This section of the Law School Admission Test requires a different approach than most exams based on reading.
Constellation, Calpine deal draws opposition from states as US FERC vets merger

1 month ago | mlex.com | Ilana Kowarski

By Ilana Kowarski ( April 1, 2025, 21:34 GMT | Comment) -- Power company Constellation Energy's proposed acquisition of rival Calpine Corp. has drawn protests from the Maryland Office of People’s Counsel and the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate despite the merging parties' fix-it-first antitrust remedy.Power company Constellation Energy's proposed acquisition of rival Calpine Corp.
In US FTC’s GTCR case, focus on PE rollups replaced by traditional M&A review

1 month ago | mlex.com | Wesley Brown |Ilana Kowarski

By Wesley Brown and Ilana Kowarski ( March 18, 2025, 21:18 GMT | Comment) -- The Biden administration's focus on private equity firms appears to have been replaced by textbook merger analysis at the US Federal Trade Commission, as highlighted by an FTC complaint against GTCR’s proposed acquisition of Surmodics. In the redacted complaint posted by the agency, the term “private equity” is mentioned just twice in a neutral non-pejorative fashion, simply to specify what type of company GTCR is.
US FTC won’t disregard rule of law by ‘forcing’ settlements, Holyoak says

2 months ago | mlex.com | Ilana Kowarski

By Ilana Kowarski ( March 12, 2025, 21:39 GMT | Insight) -- US Federal Trade Commissioner Melissa Holyoak condemned the Biden administration’s FTC today, alleging that the agency in the Biden-era had extracted concessions from businesses via settlement that would have been difficult, if not impossible, to secure via litigation.US Federal Trade Commissioner Melissa Holyoak condemned the Biden administration’s FTC today, alleging that the Biden-era FTC had extracted concessions from businesses...