19 Mar 2026
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer hires antitrust partner David Pearl in Washington, DC
"Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer hires antitrust partner David Pearl in Washington, DC. He will advise on contentious and noncontentious antitrust matters, including litigation, investigations and cross-border merger reviews."
David brings nearly 20 years of experience in both the private and government sectors and will focus on advising clients on high-stakes contentious and noncontentious antitrust issues, including litigation, investigations, cross-border merger reviews and foreign direct investment. He joins the firm as a partner from Axinn, Veltrop & Harkrider LLP, where he was a partner.
Prior to his partnership at Axinn, Veltrop & Harkrider, David served as an antitrust associate at Jones Day and subsequently worked at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, where he helped advance policy initiatives in coordination with the White House and other federal agencies.
David has extensive experience in Sherman Act Section 1 and Section 2 matters. His representations have included Google in litigations and investigations concerning its advertising technology business practices and Tyson Foods Inc. in a treble-damages class action alleging an industrywide conspiracy to manipulate product prices. He also advises on competition authority review of complex mergers and acquisitions, including AssuredPartners in its US$13.45 billion acquisition by Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., Stanley Black & Decker in its US$2 billion acquisition of MTD Holdings Inc., and Goodrich Corporation in its US$18.4 billion merger with United Technologies Corp. He has advised clients before the U.S. Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission and international competition authorities in Europe, Australia, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Brazil and beyond.