Hogan & Hartson Praises FTC Clearance

Hogan & Hartson L.L.P., an international law Firm headquartered in Washington, D.C. and regular antitrust counsel to Carnival Corporation, praised today's decision by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to close the investigation into the proposed combination of Carnival Corporation and P&O Princess Cruises plc. The FTC decision now clears the way for Carnival to proceed with its offer to Princess shareholders. The European Commission had previously granted clearance. The FTC's statement concluded: "This investigation provides a compelling illustration of the principle that our review of mergers is intensely fact-specific, driven by the dynamics of the relevant industry and the impact of the specific transactions under review. After an extensive investigation, we have concluded, as did our counterparts in Europe (who considered these mergers' potential effects on Europeans), that the facts do not warrant enforcement action."

Hogan & Hartson advised Carnival on U.S. antitrust issues related to the proposed P&O Princess acquisition from the beginning of the transaction and represented the company in the FTC investigation. In addition, the firm coordinated "rest of world" competition filings outside of the U.S. and the European Union. The Hogan & Hartson antitrust team that worked on the Carnival transaction included Washington, D.C. partners Janet McDavid and Joseph Krauss, and associates Lynda Marshall and Craig Cronheim, as well as Brussels office partner Catriona Hatton and counsel Mariabruna Fimognari.