Wm. Randolph Smith is a partner in (and former chair of) the firm's Antitrust & Competition Group. He has served as lead antitrust counsel in some of the largest and most significant transactions in the aerospace, telecommunications, chemical, and other industries, as well as in government investigations of procurement collusion and other cutting-edge antitrust issues. Examples of significant transactions include:
- AT&T's $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner, Inc., and its $67 billion acquisition of DIRECTV.
- Flowers Foods' acquisition of Wonder Bread brand and other assets from the bankrupt estate of Hostess, Inc.
- United Technologies' $30 billion acquisition of Rockwell Collins and its $16 billion acquisition of Goodrich Aerospace.
- DuPont, in its $5.8 billion acquisition of Danisco, and the $4.9 billion sale of its automotive and industrial coatings business.
- Alcoa's $2.85 billion acquisition of Firth Rixson and the $1.5 billion acquisition of RTI International Metals.
- Enterprise Holdings in its acquisitions of vRide and DEEM.
Significant government investigations include:
- DOJ investigations of procurement collusion, teaming agreements, group boycotts, information-sharing, and Clayton 8 issues.
- FTC investigations of tying, exclusive dealing, "patent ambush" and competitor collaboration issues.
- Third party representations in FTC investigations of aerospace and on-line advertising transactions and DOJ investigations of biotech and online travel transactions.
Mr. Smith provides the full range of antitrust advice associated with mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, trade associations, the Robinson-Patman Act, the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, and the interaction of the antitrust laws and intellectual property. In addition, based on his experience in the Bureau of Consumer Protection at the FTC, he has advised on advertising, and other consumer law issues, in conjunction with the firm's Advertising & Media and PRM groups.
Mr. Smith has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America in the area of antitrust law every year from 2007-2020; he has also been named to the Washington, D.C. "Super Lawyer" list each of those years. He is recommended by every significant publication ranking antitrust lawyers, including Chambers USA: America's Leading Business Lawyers, Chambers Global: The World's Leading Business Lawyers, Legal Media Group's Expert Guide to Competition and Antitrust Lawyers, and the Global Competition Review's GCR 100. Mr. Smith is an Acritas Star, Acritas Stars Independently Rated Lawyers (2016, 2017, 2019).
Prior to joining Crowell & Moring in 1981, Mr. Smith completed six years of service with the Federal Trade Commission, where his positions included Executive Assistant to the Chairman.
Mr. Smith obtained his law degree from Stanford University Law School, where he was a member of the Stanford Law Review. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Tulane University. He has published articles and commentary on antitrust developments, and has been on the faculty of numerous antitrust programs.
In The News
Mr. Smith was featured in Of Counsel, discussing his career, the legal profession, and why he decided to practice in the area of antitrust. Click here to download the interview.