Russell M. Steinthal
Partner
Russell Steinthal has experience with the full range of the group’s practice, including litigation, merger-related work and corporate counseling. Russell routinely counsels clients on a wide variety of antitrust issues, ranging from cutting-edge issues at the interplay of antitrust and patent law to the intricacies of the Hart-Scott-Rodino pre-merger notification rules. In addition, he has been a lead antitrust attorney on numerous major transactions, including the $67 billion merger of AT&T and BellSouth, A&P’s $679 million acquisition of Pathmark, Ball Corporation’s $577 million acquisition of beverage can manufacturing plants from ABI/InBev, Bemis’s $1.2 billion acquisition of Alcan Packaging Food Americas and Google’s $700 million acquisition of ITA Software and its $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility.
Russell M. Steinthal
Partner
Russell Steinthal has experience with the full range of the group’s practice, including litigation, merger-related work and corporate counseling. Russell routinely counsels clients on a wide variety of antitrust issues, ranging from cutting-edge issues at the interplay of antitrust and patent law to the intricacies of the Hart-Scott-Rodino pre-merger notification rules. In addition, he has been a lead antitrust attorney on numerous major transactions, including the $67 billion merger of AT&T and BellSouth, A&P’s $679 million acquisition of Pathmark, Ball Corporation’s $577 million acquisition of beverage can manufacturing plants from ABI/InBev, Bemis’s $1.2 billion acquisition of Alcan Packaging Food Americas and Google’s $700 million acquisition of ITA Software and its $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility.
Russell was also the lead associate on the Axinn team that spent more than a year intensively counseling MasterCard’s board of directors in the lead-up to its 2006 IPO. The IPO transformed MasterCard from a membership association of banks into a publicly-traded company and marked an important milestone in the credit card industry, which had faced a wave of antitrust challenges to its prior structure.
Experience
Mergers & Acquisitions
- Google’s $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility
- Google’s $700 million acquisition of ITA Software
- Bemis’s $1.2 billion acquisition of Alcan Packaging Food Americas
- Ball Corporation’s $577 million of beverage can manufacturing plants from ABI/InBev
- A&P’s $679 million acquisition of Pathmark
- The $57 billion merger of AT&T and BellSouth
- The 2004 sale of Candle Corporation to IBM
Investigations and Litigation
- Represented Google and Motorola Mobility in the FTC’s investigation of the latter’s standard-essential patent licensing
- Represented Matlin Patterson and Vantico in a private Section 7 challenge to a hostile takeover of Vantico, brought in the Southern District of New York, as well as in a related FTC investigation
- Represent Rapid Aid, a Canadian manufacturer of hot/cold therapy products, in a Section 2 case brought against it in the District of Maryland
Counseling
- Antitrust counsel to MasterCard’s Board of Directors in connection with MasterCard’s reorganization and $2.4 billion IPO
- Counsel to Stanley Black & Decker on Made-in-USA compliance issues
- Counsel to multiple clients on Hart-Scott-Rodino pre-merger notification issues
Honors
- Chambers USA (2015 – 2016)
- Super Lawyers, Rising Stars (2013 – 2017)
- Who’s Who Legal: Competition Future Leaders (2023 – 2024)
Education
- JD – Columbia Law School (2002) Honors: Stone Scholar; Public Service Fellow (2000); Semi-finalist, Harlan Fiske Stone Moot Court Competition (2001, 2002). Production Editor, Columbia Journal of Law & the Arts (2001-2002).
- BA, cum laude – Columbia College (1999) Honors: Departmental Honors in Computer Science.
Admissions
- New York
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
- U.S. District Court Southern District of New York
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of New York
- U.S. District Court Northern District of New York
- U.S. District Court District of Columbia
Quotes
He is just a very, very smart attorney - his analysis is top notch and his command of the facts is really impressive.
Chambers USA
Axinn is one of the only firms that truly places antitrust front and center and truly positions itself as a thought leader in this space.
The Legal 500 United States
News & Insights
News & Insights
Who's Who Legal Recognizes Twelve Axinn Attorneys
Awards & Recognitions
Antitrust
FTC Standard for Preliminary Injunctions for Mergers May be Questioned After US Supreme Court's Starbucks Ruling
Media Mentions
Antitrust
Did the Supreme Court Just Make It Harder for the FTC to Block Mergers?
Axinn Viewpoints
Antitrust
Who's Who Legal Recognizes Ten Axinn Attorneys
News
Antitrust
Axinn Matter Named 2022 GCR Behavioural Matter of the Year – Americas
News
Antitrust
American Bar Association Monthly Update for Corporate Counsel
Event
Antitrust
New York State Bar Recognizes Eleven Axinn Attorneys
News
Antitrust
Axinn Representing Silver Lake Partners LP in IMG/Learfield Merger
News
Antitrust
GCR Nominates Axinn for Litigation of the Year, Deal of the Year and Dealmaker of the Year
News
Antitrust
Axinn Represents Stanley Black & Decker in its Purchase of the Craftsman Brand from Sears Holdings
News
Antitrust