Dive Brief:
- The FTC's antitrust lawsuit against the proposed Sysco-US Foods merger now has a start date for its hearings — May 5, as determined by a federal judge.
- The hearings will last from May 5 through May 8 and could stretch for up to an additional three days, if needed, the judge said in a hearing.
- The judge says this will not be a formal trial but rather a set of hearings to determine if he will issue "a preliminary injunction to block the companies from merging while the FTC holds a longer, more-robust trial in its in-house administrative court system, beginning in July," The Wall Street Journal reports.
Dive Insight:
The FTC first called for this injunction last month, despite Sysco and US Foods' efforts to assuage any fears of the consequences of their merger, including offering to divest 11 facilities. This decision is important for either the lawsuit or the merger potentially moving forward.