Tunney day: The Tipline for 26 June 2019

A reason for CVS Health and Aetna still to be separated was born 85 years ago today. The late Senator John Tunney introduced the Antitrust Procedures and Penalties Act following allegations that the Department of Justice had been influenced by International Telephone & Telegraph’s $400,000 donation to the Republican National Committee in settling an antitrust lawsuit against the company. The Tunney Act requires a federal court to approve all merger settlements involving the DOJ. While most of the agency’s consent decrees get greenlit without much fuss, Judge Richard Leon has certainly reminded the Antitrust Division that the law is not to be overlooked.