WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) — Caledonia Investments will pay $480,000 in civil penalties to resolve allegations of violating a premerger notification and waiting period requirement mandated under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act (HSR) Act of 1976, the U.S. Department of Justice has announced.
The department’s Antitrust Division, at the request of the Federal Trade Commission, filed a civil antitrust lawsuit against Caledonia Investments in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. At the same time, the department filed a proposed settlement, to which Caledonia Investments agreed.
Under the HSR Act, companies must undergo a notification and waiting period for transactions that meet certain size thresholds. During this time, the merger can go before a pre-merger antitrust review. Federal courts can impose civil penalties if companies violate the HSR Act. The maximum penalty a court can impose, as of an Aug. 1 change, is $40,000 per day. This is an increase over the previous amount, which was $16,000 per day.
The proposed settlement will be published in the Federal Register.