Staples Legal Strategy Backfired in U.S. Office Depot Trial
- Companies’ failure to defend deal fueled court win for FTC
- Judge outlines his rationale for blocking office-supply merger
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Staples Inc.’s bid to defeat a U.S. antitrust lawsuit against its planned takeover of rival Office Depot Inc. was undermined by its own legal strategy, according to the judge who blocked the merger last week.
In a 75-page opinion made public Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan in Washington called out the office-supply companies for failing to put up a defense of their $6.3 billion deal. Because their legal teams made the surprise move to rest their case during the trial without calling witnesses, they didn’t overcome the government’s arguments that the merger would harm competition, he said.