Biography: Competition

M Sean Royall, a Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher partner specialising in antitrust, consumer protection, and commercial litigation, co-chairs both the firm's antitrust and trade regulation and the information technology and data privacy practice groups.

Mr Royall served as deputy director of the bureau of competition at the Federal Trade Commission in Washington, DC from 2001 through 2003 and played a key role in shaping and overseeing the agency's antitrust enforcement agenda, both in the merger and non-merger areas. While at the FTC, Mr Royall acted as lead trial counsel in the agency's groundbreaking suit against computer chip designer Rambus Inc a case involving patent-related monopolisation claims and allegations of deception in the standard-setting context. He also served as the lead lawyer in the FTC's review of many high-profile mergers and acquisitions, including Pepsi/Quaker Oats, Pillsbury/General Mills, Monster.com/HotJobs.com, and Chevron/Texaco.

Mr Royall has spent most of his legal career – both in and outside government – litigating complex antitrust matters involving a diverse range of industries, including computers and computer software, semiconductors, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, oil and gas, petrochemicals, industrial equipment, entertainment and ticketing, gaming devices, pet foods, food and beverages, defence, airlines, financial services, telecommunications, and avionics. He has also litigated other complex commercial disputes involving contract, false advertising, business tort, and intellectual property claims.

In addition to his litigation practice, Mr Royall regularly represents clients before the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice in antitrust and consumer protection matters, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, distribution arrangements and intellectual property licences; consults on advertising, consumer protection, and privacy/data security issues; and assists large corporations with legal compliance and records management issues.

Presently, Mr Royall is acting as lead antitrust counsel for pharmaceutical manufacturer Novo-Nordisk in federal court antitrust class action litigation involving claims of alleged generic drug exclusion. He is also presently lead counsel to Sanofi-Aventis in a federal court False Claims Act proceeding similarly based on claimed antitrust violations involving purported acts to exclude generic competition. Mr Royall is also currently representing 3M Company in federal court antitrust litigation involving patent and standard-setting-related claims. Mr Royall also acted as lead FTC counsel for Facebook Inc in connection with the company's 2010 settlement with the Commission concerning privacy-related consumer protection claims. Mr Royall also was lead antitrust counsel for Ticketmaster in connection with the DOJ's antitrust investigation of Ticketmaster's successful $2.5 billion merger with LiveNation.

Mr Royall is consistently ranked as a leading antitrust lawyer in peer-review publications. He received his law degree from University of Chicago cum laude in 1990 where he served as managing editor of the Law Review. He earned a bachelor degree in economics magna cum laude from Texas A&M University in 1986. Following law school, Mr Royall clerked for Fifth Circuit federal appellate judge Patrick Higginbotham.

Additional office in Washington, DC:

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Washington, DC 20036-5306

USA