Washington state has entered into an agreement with U.S. law firm Munger, Tolles & Olson, committing up to $2.5 million for legal representation in its lawsuit against Kroger’s proposed $25 billion acquisition of Albertsons, as revealed by contract records obtained by Reuters. The state of Washington initiated this lawsuit in January, asserting that the merger between the two grocery giants would lead to increased prices for consumers.
Two partners from Munger, Tolles & Olson, Glenn Pomerantz and Kuruvilla Olasa, are leading the legal efforts, each billing over $1,100 per hour. This firm, traditionally recognized for its corporate defense work, was initially hired in August to provide antitrust advice. Despite not appearing on the state’s original complaint against Kroger, the firm’s name has surfaced in more recent legal filings.
According to the records, the state increased the maximum contract amount from $1 million to $2.5 million since the work commenced last year. It remains unclear if the firm provided the state a discount from its usual fees; unrelated bankruptcy records show the firm’s partners often charge higher hourly rates, although law firms typically offer reduced rates for government clients.
The lawsuit in Washington is part of a broader legal challenge against the Kroger-Albertsons merger. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the state of Colorado have also filed lawsuits to block the proposed transaction. Both Kroger and Albertsons are actively defending the deal, asserting that the merger would not result in the negative consequences alleged by the plaintiffs.
In the ongoing legal battle, Kroger is represented by Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, Weil, Gotshal & Manges, and K&L Gates, while Albertsons has enlisted the services of Debevoise & Plimpton, Dechert, and Williams & Connolly.
According to Reuters’ report, Munger, Tolles & Olson is better known for representing corporate clients, but it has taken on significant government cases in the past. Notably, Pomerantz served as lead trial counsel in a lawsuit from California and other states challenging T-Mobile’s acquisition of Sprint. He also represented the U.S. Justice Department in 2011 when it successfully blocked AT&T’s purchase of T-Mobile. Currently, Pomerantz is defending Google in a lawsuit filed by Epic Games, the maker of “Fortnite,” regarding the tech giant’s app store rules.
The Washington state case is officially filed as State of Washington v. The Kroger Co et al, in the Superior Court of Washington for King County, under case number 24-2-00977-9 SEA. Spokespeople for Munger, Tolles & Olson, as well as the Washington attorney general’s office, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the ongoing litigation.
This arrangement highlights the state’s commitment to challenging the merger, reflecting broader concerns about its potential impact on market competition and consumer prices.
