James K. Hunsberger
Partner
Profile
Experience
Honors
News
Insights
Education
Admissions
LinkedIn
{ Bio Portrait }

James Hunsberger advises clients on the full range of antitrust matters, including high-profile global mergers, litigation, and government investigations.

Recognized among the top antitrust attorneys “to watch” by Best Lawyers, James represents clients across industries, including software, telecommunications, semiconductors, chemicals, consumer goods, building solutions, international shipping, and others. He has over a decade of experience representing both U.S. and foreign companies in high-stakes investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission, as well as by international competition authorities in Europe, the United Kingdom, China, Brazil, Canada, Japan, Korea, and Mexico, among others.

Clients value James’s focus on the “big picture” strategy and pragmatic approach to difficult antitrust challenges, built on a deep understanding of the markets in which they compete and the strategic imperatives of their business. Clients rely on James to guide them in gaining global clearances for complex, cross-border deals facing intense scrutiny and to develop creative defense strategies against major litigations brought under the Sherman Act, Clayton Act, and state antitrust laws.

James also has substantial experience coordinating large multijurisdictional teams across multiple law firms to achieve excellent results for clients. His recent experience includes serving as lead global antitrust counsel to VMware in its landmark $69 billion acquisition by Broadcom and representing Google in multiple litigations brought by the Department of Justice, state attorneys general, and private plaintiffs challenging Google’s ad technology business.

Prior to joining Axinn, James practiced in the antitrust group of a global law firm for seven years, where he successfully defended T-Mobile and Deutsche Telekom at trial in a federal court challenge brought by a coalition of state attorneys general seeking to block the merger of T-Mobile and Sprint (with a post-merger combined enterprise value of $146 billion). James also helped The Dow Chemical Company achieve global clearance for its $130 billion merger with DuPont, one of the largest and most complex merger reviews ever, requiring approval in more than 20 jurisdictions.

James is an active member of the Antitrust Law Section of the American Bar Association and serves on the editorial board for the Antitrust Report (LexisNexis).

James earned his JD at Georgetown University Law Center, magna cum laude and Order of the Coif, where he was an articles editor for The Georgetown Law Journal and a Legal Research & Writing Fellow. He holds an undergraduate degree in economics from Cornell University.

More » « Less

Professional Activities

  • American Bar Association, Antitrust Law Section, U.S. Comments and Policy Committee, Young Lawyer Representative (2023 – 2024)
  • American Bar Association, Antitrust Law Section, Antitrust Consumer Protection Law Daily Digest Committee, Young Lawyer Representative (2023 – 2024)
  • American Bar Association, Antitrust Law Section, Corporate Counseling Committee, Young Lawyer Representative (2022 – 2023)
  • American Bar Association, Antitrust Law Section, Federal Civil Enforcement Committee, Young Lawyer Representative (2021 – 2022)

Experience

  • Representing Google in multiple litigations brought by the Department of Justice, state attorneys general, and private plaintiffs challenging Google’s ad technology business.
  • Represented VMware, Inc., a leading virtualization software provider, in its $69 billion acquisition by Broadcom Inc., a global technology leader in semiconductor, data center hardware, and infrastructure software solutions.
  • Represented Dell Technologies Inc. in its $4 billion sale of Boomi, a leading provider of cloud-based integration platform as a service (iPaaS).
  • Represented Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. in its $1.6 billion acquisition of the remaining 80% stake in MTD Holdings Inc., a worldwide leader in outdoor power equipment.
  • Represented Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. in its $375 million acquisition of Excel Industries Inc., a leading designer and manufacturer of premium commercial and residential turf-care equipment.
  • Represented The Dow Chemical Company in its $130 billion merger with DuPont.
  • Successfully defended T-Mobile and Deutsche Telekom at trial in a federal court challenge brought by a coalition of state attorneys general seeking to block the merger of T-Mobile and Sprint (with a post-merger combined enterprise value of $146 billion). (New York et al. v. Deutsche Telekom AG et al., 439 F. Supp. 3d 179 (S.D.N.Y. 2020))
  • Successfully defended Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. and “K” Line America, Inc. in global automotive-shipping cartel investigations and follow-on civil litigation. Following guilty plea with DOJ for price-fixing charges, won complete dismissal of all damages claims in federal court class actions brought by direct and indirect purchaser plaintiffs, in a decision that was upheld by the Third Circuit. (In re Vehicle Carrier Services Antitrust Litig., 846 F.3d 71 (3d Cir. 2017)).
  • Represented KLA Corporation, a leading provider of process control and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and nanoelectronics industries, in its $3.4 billion acquisition of Orbotech Ltd., a leading global supplier of yield-enhancing and process-enabling solutions for the manufacture of electronics products.
  • Represented Keurig Green Mountain in monopolization litigation brought by competitors and putative class action plaintiffs, including successfully defending against a preliminary injunction seeking to block the launch of Keurig’s 2.0 coffee brewer in a decision that was upheld by the Second Circuit.

* Includes matters handled prior to joining Axinn

Honors

  • Best Lawyers, “Ones to Watch” for Antitrust Law (2021 2024)
  • Super Lawyers, “Rising Stars” for Antitrust Litigation (2019 2023) 

Education

  • JD, magna cum laude, Order of the Coif – Georgetown University Law Center (2013)
  • BA, Economics, with distinction in all subjects – Cornell University (2010)

Admissions

  • District of Columbia
  • New York
  • U.S. District Court District of Columbia
  • U.S. District Court District of Colorado
  • U.S. District Court Eastern District of Michigan

By using the Axinn, Veltrop & Harkrider LLP website with cookies enabled on your browser, you agree to our use of cookies during your browsing experience. Learn more about our privacy policy.