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School of Law

Countervailing Power - Antimonopoly for Workers Conference

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University of Memphis School of Law

Countervailing Power: Antimonopoly for Workers

This one-day event will explore the past, present, and future of antimonopoly for workers. Panels will cover goals, economics, litigation lessons learned, the union-antitrust interface, effective engagement with enforcers, and more.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Alvaro Bedoya, Former Federal Trade Commission Commissioner

RSVP HERE

MAY 15, 2026 at MEMPHIS LAW

The University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law and the Herff Chair of Excellence present the 2026 Herff Conference, "Countervailing Power - Antimonopoly for Workers."

Antitrust litigation involving labor markets has exploded in recent years, raising a variety of new issues for practitioners and academic researchers alike.  This one-day conference will cover the emerging legal and economic topics—ranging from the goals of the underlying laws to the proof elements for a violation—presented by this new frontier of antitrust law enforcement

The conference is free to attend.

It has been approved for 7.5 hours of General CLE Credit.

All panels will be located in Wade Auditorium on the 1st floor of the law school.

RSVP via THIS LINK.

AGENDA

8:30–9:00 a.m. - Welcome Coffee & Registration

9:00–10:00 a.m. - Panel 1: Goals and Metrics
Chair: Eric Posner (University of Chicago Law School)

Panelists:

  • Rebecca Allensworth (Vanderbilt Law School)
  • Hiba Hafiz (Boston College Law School)
  • Kyle Herkenhoff (University of Minnesota Department of Economics)


10:00–11:00 a.m. - Panel 2: Economics of Labor and Competition
Chair: Nancy Rose (MIT Economics Department)

Panelists:

  • David Berger (Duke University Economics Department)
  • Elena Prager (University of Rochester Simon Business School)
  • Hal Singer (University of Utah Department of Economics, EconOne)
  • Marshall Steinbaum (University of Utah Department of Economics)

11:00–11:15 a.m. - Morning Break

11:15 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. Panel 3: Litigation Lessons Learned
Chair: John Newman (University of Memphis School of Law)

Panelists:

  • Rachel Dempsey (Towards Justice)
  • Dean Harvey (Lieff Cabraser)
  • Susan Musser (WilmerHale, former Federal Trade Commission)
  • Richard Powers (Kressin Powers)

12:30–1:30 p.m. - Lunch and Keynote Address
Keynote Speaker: Alvaro Bedoya (former FTC Commissioner)

1:30-2:30 p.m. - Panel 4: Unions & Antitrust
Chair: Amanda Lewis (Cuneo Gilbert)

Panelists:

  • Eric Posner (University of Chicago Law School)
  • Daniel Hanley (Open Markets Institute)
  • Nell Geiser (Communications Workers of America)
  • Marka Peterson (Strategic Organizing Center)

2:30–3:45 p.m. Panel 5: Engaging with Enforcers
Moderator: Shaoul Sussman (Simonsen Sussman)

  • David Lawrence (former U.S. Department of Justice)
  • Max Miller (former FTC, former Iowa Attorney General’s office)
  • Rohan Pai (Federal Trade Commission)

3:45–4:00 p.m. - Afternoon Break

4:00–5:15 p.m. Panel 6: The Future of Labor Antimonopoly
Chair: Udit Thakur (International Brotherhood of Teamsters)

  • Slade Bond (Cuneo Gilbert)
  • Michael Kades (Nachawati Law Group, former U.S. DOJ)
  • Matt Platkin (Platkin LLP, former New Jersey Attorney General)
  • Juno Turner (Towards Justice)

5:30 p.m. Cocktail Reception