Charles F. Rule, Jonathan S. Kanter, Joseph J. Bial and Andrew J. Forman will join Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison as partners in its Antitrust Group, in Washington, D.C.

They will focus on providing antitrust advice in connection with major mergers and acquisitions, as well as handling significant antitrust litigation, including cartel defense and other substantial matters for leading U.S. and global business organizations. Rule will be co-chair of its Antitrust Group.

“With today’s heightened regulatory scrutiny of M&A transactions, intense regulatory focus on antitrust enforcement and increased private antitrust litigation, a top-flight merger clearance team and world-class antitrust litigators are indispensable assets,” said Brad S. Karp, chair of Paul, Weiss. “The addition of these extraordinary lawyers bolsters our preeminent Antitrust and M&A Groups.”

“We are delighted to welcome this team of leading antitrust lawyers to our D.C. office,” added Kenneth A. Gallo, managing partner of Paul, Weiss’s Washington, D.C. office and co-chair of the firm’s Antitrust Group. “Their talents and expertise are a great fit with our Antitrust Group, which handles front-page litigation and transactional matters for many of the world’s largest companies.”

Rule advises major corporations in high-profile mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures, and also represents clients in high-stakes civil and criminal litigation. Rule has advised on major deals in the airline, food and beverage, hospitality, oil and gas, pharmaceuticals, software and other industries. He is a former head of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, serving as the youngest Assistant Attorney General (Antitrust) in history.

Kanter represents some of the world’s most significant companies in connection with mergers and acquisitions, government investigations and public policy.

Bial represents clients in antitrust and commercial litigation trials, appeals and regulatory investigations. He also has extensive experience handling international cartel actions and antitrust cases for clients, including many based in Japan and elsewhere in Asia. Bial was a law clerk for Judge Douglas H. Ginsburg of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. He has consulted as an economic expert and also worked as an economist at the White House Office of Management and Budget.

Forman focuses on counseling clients on antitrust aspects of mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and DOJ and FTC investigations, and also has considerable experience in private antitrust litigation. Forman helped lead the teams that won Global Competition Review antitrust “Matter of the Year” awards in 2014 and 2015. He is a former FTC Bureau of Competition lawyer and has extensive experience in healthcare and pharmaceutical matters from his time in government service and in private practice.