The Obama administration has not yet named a chairman for the Federal
Trade Commission, despite the widespread expectation among Washington
antitrust lawyers that the agency's sole Democrat, Jon Leibowitz, will
get the job any day now. There's also another commissioner vacancy the
administration will have to fill, but so far, no names have emerged as
front-runners for that slot.
In the meantime, antitrust lawyers
Thursday said there's a rumor that Leibowitz may pick Rich Feinstein to
head the FTC's Bureau of Competition, which investigates mergers.
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Feinstein,
56, is a partner at the noted litigation firm of Boies Schiller &
Flexner LLP and is both an FTC alum and an Obama supporter. He ran the
FTC's healthcare shop under former Chairman Bob Pitofsky and in
private practices is involved in a range of litigation and antitrust
matters.
Feinstein declined to comment on the rumor. - Cecile Kohrs Lindell in Washington
