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    Global Problem Solving from Covington: Deal with Complex Problems Anywhere in the World

Michael J. Fanelli

Partner

Washington +1 202 662 5383

English
  • About
  • Representative Matters
  • Credentials
  • About

    Michael Fanelli helps the firm’s clients navigate the risks of global cartel and other civil competition and criminal investigations. The vast majority of the companies and individuals that he has defended have faced no adverse governmental actions. He delivers value by providing advice that enables the firm’s clients to understand their options and make the best choice in light of their legal risks and business interests.

    Drawing upon over twenty years of private practice and governmental experience, Michael is a leading in defending global and U.S. companies and executives in complex cartel investigations, involving price-fixing, bid-rigging, and market allocation. Michael also defends clients in private class action cartel litigation and other civil antitrust litigation. He recently has achieved notable early dismissals of his clients in the sprawling, In re Automotive Parts Antitrust Litigation, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 80337 (2013) and with respect to novel resale price maintenance claims brought in federal court under New York's Donnelly Act in Worldhomecenter.com, Inc. v. KWC America, Inc., 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 104496 (2011).

    Michael also advises clients in the formation and operation of joint ventures, competitor collaborations, and strategic alliances. While in government service, Michael assisted in drafting the FTC & DOJ Competitor Collaboration Guidelines.

    Michael also has extensive expertise in other governmental criminal investigations and internal corporate audit and special litigation committee investigations, and special litigation committee investigations involving a range of legal issues, including fraud and breach of fiduciary duty.

    Michael has been a leader within the antitrust bar for well over a decade. He is a former member of the ABA International Cartel Task Force, and senior leader of the ABA Antitrust Section’s International Committee and Cartel and Criminal Practice Committee. He also served as Co-Chair of the ABA Antitrust Section’s Joint Conduct Committee, which focuses on U.S. and international joint venture, cartel, and distribution issues. And, he was the Editorial Chair of the two-volume ABA Antitrust Section treatise Competition Laws Outside the United States (2011), which provided in-depth coverage of the competition laws of eighteen global jurisdictions.

    Areas of Expertise

  • Practices and Industries
  • Representative Matters
    • Represented several international manufacturers and individuals in global investigations of alleged bid-rigging in the automotive parts industry. All of these investigations have been formally closed or no actions have been taken against our clients.
    • Represented an international industrial products and services provider in a global investigation of alleged bid-rigging. The investigation was closed in the U.S. with no action taken against our client.
    • Represented numerous high-level executives in a variety of industries, including automotive parts, air passenger transport, and air cargo transport, with no actions taken against our clients.
    • Represented a major airline in a putative class action alleging price fixing of transpacific fares and surcharges.
    • Represented automotive parts manufacturers in ongoing putative class action private actions.

    • Represented a foreign senior bank executive in an international investigation of alleged fraudulent practices.
    • Represented a major manufacturer of chemical additive products in a DOJ investigation with no action taken against our client.
    • Obtained a complete dismissal of civil claims against KWC America, a manufacturer of high-end bathroom and kitchen fixtures, with respect to allegations of resale price maintenance.
    • Represented an international chemical manufacturer in grand jury investigations relating to various products. No action was taken against our client.
    • Represented the Special Committee of the Board of Directors of InfoUSA in an investigation of alleged fraud and wrongdoing by the company’s CEO.
    • Represented an international non-governmental organization in an investigation of internal corruption.
    • Represented one of the largest providers of telecommunications services in Asia in an investigation of alleged collusion. The government ultimately closed the investigation and took no action against our client.
    • Represented a leading global producer of rubber chemicals in connection with U.S., European, and Canadian price-fixing investigations and related litigation in over twenty state and federal courts.
    • Managed numerous internal investigations in a variety of industries in areas such as securities, antitrust, and foreign trade controls issues.
    • Represented a manufacturer of consumer health products in a DOJ investigation of collusion concerning broker fees. The investigation was closed with no action taken against our client.
    • Advised clients on potential criminal antitrust violations and the applicability of U.S. and foreign antitrust leniency programs.
    • Advised various clients in the automotive and industrial products industries on joint venture and collaborative activity.

    Areas of Expertise

  • Credentials
    Education
    • The George Washington University Law School, J.D., 1995
        • with Highest Honors
        • George Washington University Law Review, Member
    • State University of New York at Binghamton, B.A., 1992
    Bar Admissions
    • District of Columbia
    • New York
    Government Experience
    • Federal Trade Commission
    Judicial Clerkship
    • Hon. Robert E. Payne, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia, 1995 - 1996
    Pro Bono
    • Representation of the Society for American Archaeology in litigation before the Eastern District of Oregon and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals involving a dispute over the right to study the remains of the so-called “Kennewick Man,” a skeleton found in the Pacific Northwest believed to be as much as 9,500 years old. Ultimately, the Ninth Circuit ruled that cultural affiliation could not be established between the remains and groups claiming them as their ancestor. The decision opened the door for study of the remains and the litigation has been the subject of numerous books and other publications.
    Accolades
    • Legal 500 US, Antitrust - Cartel (2015-2017), Antitrust - Civil Litigation/Class Actions (2017)
    • Society for American Archaeology, Presidential Recognition Award (2002)
    Memberships and Affiliations
    • Joint Conduct Committee, ABA Antitrust Section, Co-Chair (2013-present)
    • International Cartel Task Force, ABA Antitrust Section (2011-2012)
    • Competition Laws Outside the United States, Editorial Chair, ABA Antitrust Section (2008-2011)
    • Cartel and Criminal Practice Committee, ABA Antitrust Section, Vice-Chair (2010)
    • International Antitrust Committee, ABA Antitrust Section, Vice-Chair (2004-2010)
    • Competition Laws Outside the United States, Editorial Board (2003-2005)
    Previous Experience
    • Michael previously served in the Federal Trade Commission’s Policy Planning Office, where he contributed to the drafting of the DOJ & FTC Competitor Collaboration Guidelines, advised on the antitrust treatment of joint ventures, and was involved in policy and investigatory matters.

    Areas of Expertise

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