Jonathan Kanter

Jonathan Seth Kanter[1] (born July 30, 1973) is an American antitrust lawyer who was confirmed by the United States Senate as the assistant attorney general of the Department of Justice Antitrust Division on November 16, 2021.[2]

Jonathan Kanter
United States Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division
Assuming office
November 16, 2021
PresidentJoe Biden
SucceedingMakan Delrahim
Personal details
Born
Jonathan Seth Kanter

(1973-07-30) July 30, 1973
New York City, New York, U.S.
EducationUniversity at Albany, SUNY (BA)
Washington University in St. Louis (JD)

Early life and education

Jonathan Seth Kanter was born in New York City in 1973.[3] He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University at Albany, SUNY and a Juris Doctor from the Washington University School of Law.[4]

Career

From 1998 to 2000, Kanter served as an attorney in the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). From 2000 to 2007, he was an associate at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson. He was an associate at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft from 2007 to 2016. In August 2016, Kanter became a partner at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. He founded the Kanter Law Group in 2020.

Throughout his career, Kanter has been a critic of Big Tech.[5][6] Kanter has questioned the value of the dominant "consumer welfare standard" in antitrust policy, arguing that the purpose of antitrust enforcement "is not to decide what is maximally efficient, but to enforce the law".[7]

Biden administration

On July 20, 2021, Kanter was nominated to serve as assistant attorney general in the Department of Justice Antitrust Division.[8] His nomination has been endorsed by nine former assistant attorneys general for the Antitrust Division, including Makan Delrahim, who served in the position under Donald Trump.[9]

On October 6, 2021, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[10] On October 28, 2021, his nomination was favorably reported out of committee.[11] His nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate by a vote of 68–29.[12][2]

Tenure

As assistant attorney general, Kanter has collaborated with FTC Chair Lina Khan on efforts to reform federal merger guidelines. This has been described as a signal that both agencies are set to intensify their scrutiny of big mergers.[13]

See also

References
  1. "UNITED STATES SENATE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY QUESTIONNAIRE FOR NON-JUDICIAL NOMINEES - Jonathan Kanter" (PDF). United States Senate.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. "U.S. Senate confirms Google critic Kanter to head Justice Dept Antitrust Division". Reuters. November 17, 2021. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
  3. "Questionnaire for Non-Judicial Nominees" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  4. "President Biden Announces Jonathan Kanter for Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust". The White House. July 20, 2021. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
  5. Hirsch, Lauren; McCabe, David (July 20, 2021). "Biden to Name a Critic of Big Tech as the Top Antitrust Cop". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
  6. Grim, Ryan. "Top Contender for Justice Department Antitrust Post Took Partisan Approach to Google Cases". The Intercept. Retrieved July 20, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. Abarinova, Masha. "Advocates for Antitrust Enforcement Say Consumer Welfare Standard Only One Layer of Competition Law". Retrieved September 9, 2021.
  8. "Biden taps progressives' favorite for DOJ antitrust post". POLITICO. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
  9. Feiner, Lauren (September 24, 2021). "Nine former DOJ antitrust chiefs urge Senate to confirm Jonathan Kanter as antitrust head". CNBC. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  10. "Nominations". Washington, D.C.: United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. October 6, 2021.
  11. "Daily Digest: Thursday, October 28, 2021". www.congress.gov. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  12. "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Jonathan Kanter, of Maryland, to be an Assistant Attorney General)". US Senate. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  13. Feiner, Lauren (January 18, 2022). "FTC, DOJ seek to rewrite merger guidelines, signaling a tougher look at large deals". CNBC. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
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