Key Takeaway
- Effective immediately, parties may use the old, simpler HSR form for premerger notification to the FTC and the DOJ.
On March 19, 2026, the Fifth Circuit denied the FTC’s motion for a stay pending appeal of a district court order invalidating the new HSR form that has been in effect since February 2025.1 Effective immediately, HSR filers may revert to filing on the old, simpler HSR form to satisfy their premerger notification requirements for transactions subject to the HSR Act.
The invalidated version of the form had imposed more burdensome requirements on filers, such as production of additional categories of documents and narrative responses.2 In February 2026, a district court in Texas invalidated the 2024 FTC final rule that created the new HSR forms, finding that the FTC exceeded its authority under the HSR Act and the Administrative Procedure Act.3
In a March 19 post on its website, the FTC says parties may voluntarily continue to use the new HSR forms,4 but it is unlikely many would choose to do so going forward because the previous version of the form took less time and cost less to prepare for both buyers and sellers.
Footnotes
1. See Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America v. Federal Trade Commission, Case No. 26-40094 (5th Cir. Mar. 19, 2026), ECF No. 44-2.
3. See Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America v. Federal Trade Commission, Case No. 6:25-cv-9-JDK (E.D. Tex. Feb. 12, 2026), ECF No. 75; see also https://www.bakerlaw.com/insights/federal-court-vacates-and-sets-aside-the-new-hsr-form/.
4. https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/premerger-notification-program
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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