Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones takes part in the annual training camp opening ceremony and special fan event, Cowboys Back Together Weekend in Oxnard, California, July 27, 2024.and former New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, has settled a lawsuit with the Department of Justice over allegedly violating antitrust regulations during an acquisition.
Both companies were supposed to act as separate entities until the acquisition cleared reviews from antitrust agencies, according to the DOJ’s complaint. In August 2023, Legends learned that an unnamed North Carolina city had planned on issuing a request-for-proposal of a pre-existing arena and other venues. When that happened, a senior Legends executive asked Legends’ former CEO, who was not named in the complaint, if ASM Global could handle it instead, the complaint said.Legends’ former CEO said he didn’t want to compete with ASM Global, according to the complaint.
“Companies must remain separate and independent before they close their merger. Our complaint alleges that Legends did not live up to that obligation,” said Andrew Forman, deputy assistant attorney general at the DOJ’s Antitrust Division.The penalty as well as the other requirements are being placed in the hopes of further enforcing the law, Forman said.