Gail Levine, former deputy director of FTC’s Bureau of Competition, joins Mayer Brown in Washington DC

Ms. Levine to co-lead firm’s global Antitrust & Competition practice

Mayer Brown announced today that antitrust veteran Gail F. Levine has joined the firm as a partner in Washington DC, where she will co-lead the firm’s global Antitrust & Competition practice alongside Chicago-based partner Britt Miller and DC-based partner William Stallings. Ms. Levine joins from the US Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Bureau of Competition, where she served as a deputy director under Chairman Joseph Simons and Acting Chairwoman Rebecca Slaughter.

“Gail is a highly respected and well-known member of the antitrust bar, both in the US and globally, and we are thrilled to welcome her to our premier antitrust team,” said Ms. Miller. “She adds tremendous strength to the practice’s government investigations and merger reviews capabilities, particularly in the high-tech, health care, pharmaceutical and life sciences sectors.”

“We are likely to see an unprecedented level of merger and conduct investigations,” added Mr. Stallings. “Gail’s extensive government experience at the FTC, where she played a key role in the Commission’s enforcement efforts, coupled with her impressive in-house tech experience at Verizon and Uber, where she worked closely with many Silicon Valley companies on patent reform and antitrust issues, will benefit our clients across industries.”

Ms. Levine joined the FTC as a deputy director of the Bureau of Competition in 2018. In this role, she supervised over 100 attorneys in five divisions, handling all aspects of antitrust review. She oversaw a wide variety of merger reviews, anticompetitive conduct investigations and antitrust litigation, particularly in areas such as high tech, pharmaceuticals, biotech and health care. She helped establish the new Technology Enforcement Division, which investigates anticompetitive conduct in digital markets.

Previously, Ms. Levine spent more than a decade in-house. She was one of Uber’s top lawyers, working as head of US regulatory affairs and as director for competition, where she counseled senior business and legal executives on emerging competition and regulatory issues. She also served as vice president and associate general counsel at Verizon Communications, where she handled antitrust and IP issues.

“I’ve long known Mayer Brown’s talented and collegial team of antitrust lawyers—the synergies between my tech, pharmaceutical and life sciences-focused antitrust experience and Mayer Brown’s already impressive platform make the firm a perfect fit for my return to the private sector,” said Ms. Levine. “I look forward to working alongside my new colleagues and helping our clients navigate an increasingly active enforcement environment.”

Prior to her tenure in-house, Ms. Levine was an attorney advisor to former FTC Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras, advising on antitrust and IP matters. She was a significant contributor to the FTC’s first major report on IP and innovation and co-authored many other FTC reports. Earlier in her career, Ms. Levine was a trial attorney with the Civil Division of the US Department of Justice.

“Gail’s arrival enhances our existing capabilities in Washington and further strengthens the firm’s bench of antitrust talent with high-level government experience,” said Raj De, the managing partner of Mayer Brown’s Washington DC office.

An active community member, Ms. Levine has held several leadership roles in the American Bar Association’s Section of Antitrust Law, and today she serves as a vice chair of its committee dedicated to promoting women in antitrust. She has previously served on the ABA Antitrust Section’s Council, its governing board; the ABA Presidential Transition Task Force; and the ABA Presidential Task Force on Pleading Standards. Additionally, she is a sought-after speaker and writer on antitrust and IP issues.