by Brian G. Filler, Robert M. Cattaneo on March 23, 2026
On March 19, 2026, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC’s) motion for a stay pending appeal in the challenge to the agency’s sweeping overhaul of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act (HSR) premerger notification filing requirements. The decision means that a lower-court order vacating the new rules is now effective immediately, and parties may revert to the older, less-burdensome HSR form that was in place before the changes took effect in February 2025.
Background
The FTC’s overhaul represented
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