Justice Department Resumes Targeted Second-Request Merger Reviews
By Brian Bateman
The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division said July 23, 2026, that it had resumed targeted Second Request investigations, changing how the department is conducting part of its federal merger-review process.
The department said the purpose of returning to targeted Second Requests is to expedite merger review. The announcement applies across the United States and is not limited to one company, transaction or state.
What a Second Request means
A Second Request is a formal stage of federal merger review. It requires merging parties to provide additional information to the government as antitrust officials examine a proposed transaction.
By describing the investigations as targeted, the department identified a narrower procedural focus for the additional information it seeks in the reviews covered by the announcement. The Justice Department did not say how many investigations will be affected, which mergers are currently subject to the process or how the change will apply to any particular transaction.
The announcement is therefore a change in review procedure, not a final decision on a merger. It does not itself approve or block any deal.
Why the change matters for technology companies
Large technology transactions can involve questions about competition in digital markets, and the Antitrust Division’s policy applies to technology companies as well as other merger applicants. The new approach could affect how quickly major transactions move through intensive federal antitrust scrutiny.
That potential effect is procedural. The Justice Department has stated an aim of speeding review, but the announcement does not provide a timetable, a projected processing time or a measure of how much faster investigations will be.
For companies seeking to merge, the practical question is how the department’s targeted information requests will shape the review of an individual deal. Parties whose transactions enter that formal stage may need to provide additional information, but the source announcement does not identify any company or specify what information will be requested in a particular case.
For workers, consumers and competitors, the broader significance is that the federal government is adjusting the way it examines proposed combinations. The available announcement does not establish whether the change represents a relaxation or a tightening of antitrust enforcement. It describes the intended administrative result—expedited review—without announcing a new enforcement outcome.
Part of a broader 2026 competition-policy effort
The Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission also sought public comment in February 2026 on guidance concerning collaborations among businesses. That effort included topics such as algorithmic pricing, information sharing, data sharing and collaborations involving labor.
The February action provides context for a broader 2026 review of antitrust guidance, but it is separate from the July 23 announcement about Second Request investigations. Public comments on business-collaboration guidance do not determine the outcome of a particular merger, and the packet does not state that the two initiatives share a specific case or deadline.
The FTC’s current technology-policy materials also show agency attention to artificial-intelligence company conduct and consumer-protection questions. That context is relevant to the technology sector, but the Justice Department’s announcement concerns the merger-review process and does not announce an AI enforcement action.
What happens next
The Justice Department’s stated next step is to implement targeted Second Request investigations as part of its effort to expedite merger review. No specific transaction, approval, challenge, deadline or enforcement finding was announced with the policy change.
That leaves the effect on individual technology and other major mergers to future case activity. Until the department identifies affected investigations or reports results in particular reviews, the July 23 announcement establishes a procedural direction rather than a deal-by-deal outcome.
Sources
- Justice Department Resumes Targeted HSR Merger Review Process, U.S. Department of Justice
- Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission Seek Public Comment for Guidance on Business Collaborations, U.S. Department of Justice
- Artificial Intelligence, Federal Trade Commission
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