United States: A tech opponent to lead the Justice department’s Antitrust division

President-elect Donald Trump appointed Gail Slater as head of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division on December 4, 2024. A former leader at the Federal Trade Commission, the U.S. competition authority, she is renowned for her battles against the monopolistic practices of tech giants. Gail Slater will assume her position in January 2025.

“The tech giants have been given free rein for years, stifling competition in our most innovative sector and, as we all know, using their market dominance to suppress the rights of countless Americans and small tech businesses,” Donald Trump stated when announcing the appointment.

Gail Slater is expected to push the Justice Department to adopt a more stringent stance against major U.S. tech companies, particularly in several ongoing federal court cases. Google, in particular, faces potential penalties in two separate cases.

In the summer of 2024, U.S. courts found the internet giant guilty of abusing its market dominance in online search. The Justice Department will issue Google’s sanction by late summer 2025, which could include a requirement to sell its Chrome browser. A second federal trial against Google, focused on anticompetitive practices in online advertising, recently concluded. The Justice Department is expected to announce its verdict by the end of the first quarter of 2025.

Gail Slater will also oversee the continued investigation of two other antitrust lawsuits: one against Apple in the smartphone sector and another against Nvidia in the graphics card market.