The Antitrust Procedures and Penalties Act (commonly known as the Tunney Act, 15 U.S.C. § 16(b)-(h)) subjects the Antitrust Division’s consent judgments to public scrutiny and comment. The Tunney Act requires that if the Division seeks a court-ordered consent judgment under the antitrust laws, it must file a Competitive Impact Statement that sets forth the information necessary for the court and public to evaluate the proposed consent judgment in light of the Division’s filed complaint and publish that statement and the proposed final judgment in the Federal Register to allow for at least a 60-day comment period.

After the end of the 60-day comment period, the Division must publish in the Federal Register any comments received and the Division’s reply before it can move the court to enter the proposed final judgment. When considering whether to enter the proposed final judgment, the court must generally approve the agreed-to judgment so long as it is in the public interest. Congress amended the Tunney Act in 2004 to clarify that that it does not compel the court to engage in extended review proceedings or permit any third party to intervene in the entry of the proposed judgment.

[added January 2025]