Rick Rule is the chairman of Rule Garza Howley LLP. Since founding the firm in March 2022, Rick has represented the PGA Tour in connection with an investigation by the DOJ’s Antitrust Division, Cigna-Express Scripts in connection with the FTC’s study of PBMs, and Cigna-Express Scripts in connection with a lawsuit filed by Ohio’s Attorney General over alleged antitrust violations.
He has represented clients before the Antitrust Division, the Federal Trade Commission, State Attorneys General and major foreign antitrust regulators in connection with many of the most notable merger investigations, including Exxon’s merger with Mobil, US Airways’ merger with American Airlines, and Cigna’s acquisition of Express Scripts. At the same time, Rick has represented clients in some of most prominent government investigations of the last quarter century, including leading the team that settled the Government’s monopolization case against Microsoft and defending international companies and executives in major antitrust criminal investigations.
Rick began his career in the 1980s in the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, becoming the Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Division from 1986-89 – the youngest person ever to be confirmed by the Senate to that position. Over the last 30+ years since leaving the Division, Rick has led the antitrust practices at several leading D.C. and New York firms, including Covington & Burling and Paul, Weiss.
For four decades, Rick has been at the forefront of antitrust law and is uniquely capable of advising clients on the antitrust regulatory environment affecting the way they do business globally. Acknowledged as one of the world’s leading antitrust lawyers, Rick has received numerous industry recognitions throughout his career, including being ranked as a top-band attorney in the Antitrust and Competition categories by Chambers USA and Chambers Global; as a “Leading Lawyer” in the Antitrust Civil Litigation category by The Legal 500 US; and as a “Top 10 Practitioner” in the Antitrust category by Benchmark Litigation.
In 2019, Rick was named “Dealmaker of the Year” by The American Lawyer and a Law 360 “Competition MVP” for his work on behalf of Cigna in its acquisition of Express Scripts. In 2018, Rick and his team were awarded “European Deal of the Year” by The Deal at its inaugural European Awards for their work on behalf of Monsanto in its acquisition by Bayer. In 2012, Rick’s work on behalf of Microsoft in its acquisition of Skype was awarded “Merger Control Matter of the Year – Europe” by Global Competition Review.
Rick was also named a top legal innovator by the Financial Times in its annual “U.S. Innovative Lawyers” report for his work on behalf of Microsoft. Additional publications consistently rank Rick as one of the leading antitrust lawyers in the world, including The Best Lawyers in America, The Legal Times, Lawdragon, The Washingtonian, Super Lawyers and multiple Who’s Who Legal publications.
Updated Sep 2023
