Milbank Adds Leading Antitrust Partners Rich Parker and Grant Bermann in DC

WASHINGTON, April 11, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Milbank LLP recently welcomed Richard G. Parker and Grant A. Bermann as partners in Washington, DC, further strengthening the firm's Global Antitrust and Competition group with a leading US antitrust team. Mr. Parker is a preeminent antitrust expert, who in recent decades has earned high accolades as one of the nation's leading trial lawyers, and is a former Director of the FTC's Bureau of Competition. Mr. Bermann is an experienced antitrust attorney and a rising star at the DOJ who has litigated some of the most important antitrust disputes in recent years on behalf of the United States.

"We are thrilled to welcome Rich and Grant on board," said Milbank Chairman Scott A. Edelman. "Rich is a luminary in the antitrust bar, and Grant has emerged as a leader in the field. Each of them has led some of the most challenging and significant antitrust enforcement matters in recent years. Together, their capabilities and experiences in private practice and as government enforcers will be invaluable to our clients as they navigate the current regulatory environment." 

The addition of Mr. Parker and Mr. Bermann closely follows the arrival of other leading lawyers to Milbank's Global Antitrust and Competition group. Within the past year, partner Adam Di Vincenzo and special counsel Daniel Rosenthal have joined in Washington, DC, and partners Andrea L. Hamilton and Ajal Notowicz have joined in London.

"Milbank's transactional practices take on market-moving mergers and acquisitions, and our clients depend on our antitrust and foreign investment expertise to successfully navigate the US and global merger review processes and efficiently execute their most important transactions," noted Daniel Perry, practice group leader of the Litigation & Arbitration Group. "The addition of Rich and Grant—and the growth of our global antitrust/competition bench—is crucial to that objective."

"Rich and Grant are among the best, most respected antitrust lawyers in the US, and have proven adept at handling the most cutting-edge and important transactional, litigation and regulatory matters. They also bring additional experience in key industries for Milbank's platform—energy, transportation, aviation, private equity, and more," said partner Fiona A. Schaeffer. "Our clients operating in those sectors and others that are subject to a high degree of government scrutiny will benefit from their government experience and industry expertise."

"We expect regulators in the US, Europe, and globally to continue aggressive antitrust enforcement activity for the foreseeable future," said antitrust partner Adam Di Vincenzo. "Clients can depend on Rich, Grant, and the rest of our antitrust and government investigations team in the US and around the world, to guide them through their most high-stakes, bet-the-company matters."

"I'm excited to work with Milbank's premier team of antitrust, litigation, and transactional attorneys," said Mr. Parker. "Trial and regulatory experience are vital to clients that face aggressive antitrust enforcers in investigations and litigation."

"I am thrilled to join Milbank's talented global antitrust team," said Mr. Bermann. "Milbank is known for its sophisticated, market-leading work, and its collaborative culture. I look forward to helping clients achieve their strategic goals in an environment of heightened enforcement in the US and around the world."

Richard G. Parker

One of the foremost antitrust experts and trial lawyers in the United States, Mr. Parker is frequently called upon by clients to represent them in their most sensitive and high-profile antitrust matters. He has served as lead counsel for corporate clients and the US government in many of the most significant, precedent-setting antitrust cases in recent decades, including U.S. v. American Airlines and the landmark challenge brought by state attorneys general to the $26 billion merger between Sprint and T-Mobile.

Mr. Parker's work in these and other matters has earned him high honors. Chambers USA ranks him a first-tier "Leading Lawyer" in Antitrust. Benchmark Litigation ranks him among the "Top 100 Trial Lawyers in America." Benchmark named Mr. Parker its "East Coast Antitrust Litigator of the Year" in 2021, and Best Lawyers in America named him Antitrust "Lawyer of the Year" in 2023. Mr. Parker has also been recognized as a leading lawyer in Who's Who Legal, Euromoney, Legal 500, The Legal Times, and Lawdragon.

Mr. Parker previously served as the Director of the FTC's Bureau of Competition, where he oversaw all antitrust investigations and litigations at the FTC. Since then, he has developed a broad antitrust practice, working with prominent clients on merger clearances, criminal and cartel matters, class actions and government antitrust and consumer protection investigations. Both public and private companies regularly seek his antitrust counsel and representation for bet-the-company litigation and M&A transactions.

Mr. Parker joins Milbank from Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, where he was a member of the Antitrust and Competition practice. Prior to that, he was co-chair of the Antitrust and Competition practice at O'Melveny & Myers. He received his J.D., Order of the Coif, from the UCLA School of Law. He is admitted to practice in California and the District of Columbia.

Grant A. Bermann

As a trial attorney at the DOJ's Antitrust Division, Mr. Bermann led major merger and conduct investigations in the oilfield services, aviation, and transportation industries. He also litigated some of the highest profile and most important antitrust cases of the past few years on behalf of the United States, including the DOJ's challenges to Visa's acquisition of Plaid, Sabre's acquisition of Farelogix, the joint venture between American Airlines and JetBlue, and JetBlue's acquisition of Spirit Airlines. In recognition of his litigation contributions, the DOJ awarded him the Assistant Attorney General's Award of Distinction.

While at the DOJ, Mr. Bermann shaped antitrust policy and worked closely with state attorneys general and foreign antitrust enforcers. He advised on the ongoing revision of the DOJ/FTC Merger Guidelines, the analytical framework used by the U.S. government to evaluate the legality of mergers and acquisitions under the antitrust laws. This ongoing review will result in the first revisions to the Guidelines since 2010. At the request of the DOJ, he trained antitrust enforcers from around the world on the law, economics, and procedure of merger review.

Mr. Bermann was also a leader in mentoring, diversity, and inclusion at the DOJ, serving as Chair of the Antitrust Division's Mentor Advisory Board and a leading member of the Division's Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, Expression Task Force.

Mr. Bermann joined the DOJ from Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, where he was a member of the Antitrust practice and represented clients in litigation, government investigations, and merger review. He received his J.D. from Yale Law School. He is admitted to practice in New York and the District of Columbia.

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