On March 11, 2025, the U.S. Senate confirmed Gail Slater to lead the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. Slater received bipartisan support in her confirmation.
The Oxford-educated Slater served as a policy adviser to Vice President J.D. Vance in 2024 when he was a U.S. Senator. Before that, she worked in a range of public and private antitrust roles that likely bolstered her confirmation. Slater previously worked at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for a decade, first as a trial attorney focused on merger review matters and then as an attorney adviser to FTC Commissioner Julie Brill. After leaving the FTC, Slater worked for the Internet Association, a trade group focused on issues in the tech sector. During the first Trump administration, she worked as an aide on the National Economic Council, which advises the President on matters of economic policy. In that role, Slater focused on technology, telecommunications and cybersecurity issues, including advising on the administration’s approach to 5G wireless technology. She then worked in the private sector — with jobs at Fox Corp. and Roku — before returning to public service as an adviser to Vance. Slater received a letter of support from nine prior heads of the Antitrust Division across multiple administrations. They wrote: “Ms. Slater has the experience, intelligence, judgment, and leadership skills necessary to serve as an excellent Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division.”
Slater is expected to continue DOJ’s scrutiny of and civil litigation against Big Tech companies, drawing on her experience in the tech space. In his announcement of her nomination, President Donald Trump stated that “Big Tech has run wild for years, stifling competition in our most innovative sector and, as we all know, using its market power to crack down on the rights of so many Americans, as well as those of Little Tech!” He indicated that DOJ would continue to vigorously enforce the antitrust laws against Big Tech companies, and members of Congress have expressed concern about perceived abuses of market power in connection with content moderation. Likewise, Vance previously signaled a desire for continued antitrust enforcement against Big Tech companies. In 2024, he stated, for example, that he thought Lina Khan — the Biden-appointed FTC Chair — did “a pretty good job” in her vigorous enforcement of the antitrust laws against Big Tech companies.
In other areas of civil enforcement, however, Slater has indicated that she may take a more measured approach to enforcement. At her confirmation hearing, Slater stated that “antitrust is a scalpel, it’s targeted enforcement and it requires evidence of anticompetitive conduct and harmed consumers.” Slater may be more willing than the prior administration to work with parties to remedy perceived antitrust violations in the merger context through structural or behavioral remedies. That is not to say that Slater will take a laissez-faire approach to merger enforcement. She endorsed the 2023 Merger Guidelines — issued during the Biden administration — and indicated support for the Trump administration’s decision to file a suit seeking to block the merger of Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company and Juniper Networks, Inc.
It has yet to be seen how criminal antitrust enforcement will change under Slater’s leadership — criminal antitrust enforcement has continued at a brisk pace in the Trump administration, but Slater’s background is in civil enforcement and the Trump administration has given fewer clues related to its criminal antitrust enforcement priorities. At her confirmation hearing, Slater indicated that she is interested in exploring whether banks or technology platforms have used market power or collusive agreements to “debank” or “deplatform” consumers, including consumers who express support for Trump or politically conservative opinions. Slater also mentioned her concern that in concentrated industries, noncompetes may prevent workers from switching jobs easily. It is unclear whether hypothetical investigations into any alleged agreements in these spaces would be pursued criminally or civilly, and whether Slater will continue DOJ’s criminal enforcement efforts in labor market cases.
McGuireWoods antitrust attorneys are monitoring the DOJ Antitrust Division’s enforcement priorities to assist clients navigating the changed landscape. For a conversation about antitrust enforcement in the new administration, contact any of the authors.