Exclusive: DoJ antitrust chief reveals plans to leave in 2021

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Gardens, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

Exclusive: DoJ antitrust chief reveals plans to leave in 2021

Makan Delrahim, the head of the US Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division

In an exclusive interview, assistant attorney general Makan Delrahim says he will leave the Department of Justice at the end of Trump’s first term, whether the president wins the election or not

Makan Delrahim, the head of the US Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, has told Managing IP that he plans to step down after Donald Trump’s first term, whether the president wins or loses the election on November 3.

In an exclusive interview, Delrahim said: “My plans have been to leave at the end of this president's first term. Regardless of the outcome of the election, I anticipate that there will be someone else in my seat in the next year.”

Managing IP will publish the full interview with Delrahim, in which he talks about why he is leaving the DoJ, his record at the department and what he thinks about criticism of his approach to antitrust enforcement of standard essential patents, next week. 

Delrahim, who was appointed to his role as assistant attorney general in September 2017, was also interviewed by this publication in 2018.

He spoke about his commitment to the New Madison approach, which sets out that antitrust law should not be used as a tool to police FRAND commitments that patent-holders unilaterally make to standard setting organisations, and other plans for his term at the DoJ.

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

With the US privacy landscape more fragmented and active than ever and federal legislation stalled, lawyers at Sheppard Mullin explain how states are taking bold steps to define their own regimes
Viji Krishnan of Corsearch unpicks the results of a survey that reveals almost 80% of trademark practitioners believe in a hybrid AI model for trademark clearance and searches
News of Via Licensing Alliance selling its HEVC/VCC pools and a $1.5 million win for Davis Polk were also among the top talking points
The winner of a high-profile bidding war for Warner Bros Discovery may gain a strategic advantage far greater than mere subscriber growth - IP licensing leverage
A vote to be held in 2026 could create Hogan Lovells Cadwalader, a $3.6bn giant with 3,100 lawyers across the Americas, EMEA and Asia Pacific
Varuni Paranavitane of Finnegan and IP counsel Lisa Ribes compare and contrast two recent AI copyright decisions from Germany and the UK
Exclusive in-house data uncovered by Managing IP reveals French firms underperform on providing value equivalent to billing costs and technology use
The new court has drastically changed the German legal market, and the Munich-based firm, with two recent partner hires, is among those responding
Consultation feedback on mediation and arbitration rules and hires for Marks & Clerk and Heuking were also among the major talking points
Nick Groombridge shares how an accidental turn into patent law informed his approach to building a practice based on flexibility and balancing client and practitioner needs
Gift this article