Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim Announces Selection of Kathy O'Neill as the Antitrust Division's New Senior Director of Investigation and Litigation

Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Justice Department's Antitrust Division today announced the elevation of Section Chief Kathy O’Neill to the new role of Senior Director of Investigations and Litigation.  O’Neill, who most recently served as Chief of the Antitrust Division’s Transportation, Energy and Agriculture Section, will serve in the division’s front office as the senior-most career civil antitrust attorney, with responsibility over all civil merger and conduct investigations and litigation. 

“Kathy has proven her extraordinary talent as a leader in the Antitrust Division time and again, helping bring a number of blockbuster investigations to successful resolutions in recent years.  Her leadership, breadth of experience and advocacy have been invaluable, and in her new role she will be able to work closely with all of our civil section leadership to ensure that we carry out our mission on behalf of American consumers efficiently and effectively,” said Assistant Attorney General Delrahim.

O’Neill has been with the Antitrust Division for 12 years.  Prior to joining the Antitrust Division, she worked as an assistant attorney general for the New York State Attorney General, an attorney advisor for the Federal Communications Commission and in private practice.  O’Neill has played a leading role in advancing numerous high-profile matters, including the Antitrust Division’s investigation and settlement of Bayer’s proposed acquisition of Monsanto; the division’s civil investigation of a big-rigging conspiracy by several South Korea-based companies, which resulted in record-setting settlements under Section 4A of the Clayton Act; and the division’s successful challenge to Halliburton’s proposed acquisition of Baker Hughes.  O’Neill also played a prominent role in the litigation and settlement of U.S. v. US Airways Group Inc. and AMR Corp in 2013 and the Antitrust Division’s successful litigation efforts in U.S. v. NCM and Screenvision in 2015, U.S. v. AT&T Inc., T-Mobile USA Inc. and Deutsche Telekom AG in 2011 and U.S. v. JBS S.A. in 2008.

O’Neill received her J.D. from Tulane Law School and her B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania.