May 23, 2023 — AAI honored Colorado Attorney General Philip Weiser with the Alfred E. Kahn Award for Antitrust Achievement for his significant contributions to antitrust enforcement at AAI’s 24th Annual Policy Conference: Taking Stock of Antitrust’s Pro-Enforcement Movement. Watch his acceptance video below.
Jonathan Sallet, Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Litigation, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, was invited to provide his insights on AG Weiser’s acceptance of this award. Read Sallet’s full remarks here.
Twice elected as Attorney General for Colorado, AG Weiser’s exceptional leadership in antitrust has resulted in numerous successful cases that have protected consumers and promoted competition in a variety of industries. His work shows a commitment to protecting competition and consumers from harmful business practices.
Most recently, AG Weiser urged the courts to block the proposed merger of retail grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons. He has championed numerous investigations and prosecutions of antitrust violations in the telecommunications, pharmaceutical, and tech industries. In 2019, the Colorado Department of Law joined a coalition of state attorneys general in suing to block the T-Mobile and Sprint merger. He sued Purdue Pharma for its role in the opioid crisis and Big Pharma for alleging price-fixing, and was involved in antitrust lawsuits against Google and Facebook.
Below are highlights from Sallet’s remarks.
“It’s a privilege to work for Phil Weiser. He’s a great leader, lawyer and, of course, antitrust expert. But there’s more. Phil is a person of values. Not what’s convenient, but what is correct. Not what’s popular, but what is principled. There’s a biblical passage that he likes. It’s from the Book of Deuteronomy and it says, “Justice, Justice you shall pursue.” (16:20).
The pursuit of justice is all-important; to correct wrongs, to counter prejudice and hate, to hold people accountable. It takes many people, working together, over time, to bend the arc of the moral universe toward justice.
But it’s not enough to pursue justice where others have done injustice; it’s just as important to practice justice oneself. And that is what Phil does and that is even more unique than, say, understanding the Microsoft decision. Phil practices justice in the way he thinks and the way he acts; in the conduct of his office and in course of his own life. Leadership is not the act of just issuing edicts from afar, it’s the work of inspiring people up close, treating them fairly and with respect, always understanding what you are doing for them not just what they are doing for you. That’s what Phil does and that’s an example of practicing justice.”
