Brian K. McCalmon

Brian McCalmon has nearly three decades of experience navigating government investigations and high-stakes, business-critical disputes.

He guides clients through complex antitrust, consumer protection and regulatory matters, represents them in M&A and conduct antitrust investigations and defends corporations in lawsuits alleging antitrust violations.

Brian counsels companies on antitrust compliance, handles merger reviews, and represents clients in litigation, DOJ, FTC and state attorneys general investigations and government enforcement actions. He structures mergers, acquisitions and other business-critical deals to minimize antitrust risk, defends clients facing deceptive trade practices, monopolization and cartel claims, and resolves competitor litigation efficiently and strategically. Whether litigating, resolving a regulatory inquiry or navigating an M&A clearance, Brian bases his strategy on the client’s ultimate objective to resolve the matter as quickly and efficiently as possible.

For consumer-facing companies, Brian also advises on FTC, FDA and Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act compliance, product labeling and advertising. He knows his clients’ industries and the entire product life cycle, from manufacturing through end-of-life management. This knowledge makes him skilled in identifying potential problems and developing marketing and product best practices to minimize risk.

Brian provides pro bono legal counsel to underserved communities and nonprofit organizations. He is pro bono antitrust counsel to Travalyst, a sustainability initiative in the travel sector, represents prisoners in cases brought to vindicate violations of their civil rights, and serves on the pro bono panel for the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.

Experience

• Represented an industry-leading private equity firm in the sale of Resco Products, Inc., an industrial refractory manufacturer, to RHI Magnesita, including compliance with a Second Request.
• Successfully navigated a DOJ investigation, from HSR filing, through Second Request compliance, to final disposition via a "fix-it-first" solution that resolved the matter without the need for a consent decree. The merger established the acquirer as the industry leader in its field.
• Served as lead antitrust counsel for Waste Management, Inc. in the successful resolution of an investigation by the DOJ and multiple states into its $4.5 billion merger with Advanced Disposal Services, resolving the DOJ’s alleged competitive concerns across multiple services in over 50 geographic markets in the United States.
• Represented as lead antitrust counsel a national paperboard and packaging company in its $1.8 billion acquisition of a consumer packaging business, resolving DOJ concerns and establishing the client as the leading competitor in its field.
• Favorably resolved a nonpublic joint DOJ/state investigation of a services provider client’s acquisition of a competitor securing a quick “fix-it-first” approval of the acquisition in one of the only examples of adopting a conduct remedy that addressed horizontal competitive concerns raised by the government.
• Serving as antitrust counsel in an ongoing monopolization lawsuit against a dominant information services provider.
• Defended a national industrial services provider in a nonpublic state AG investigation into whether the client had colluded with a competitor in a group boycott. The investigation was dropped with no action taken.
• Won dismissal of a monopolization complaint on behalf of a ski resort in the District of Vermont, and successfully defended the dismissal on appeal to the Second Circuit.