Secretariat Supports NRG Acquisition from LS Power
On January 30, 2026, NRG completed its acquisition from LS Power of 18 natural-gas-fired generation facilities totaling about 13 GW and CPower, a 6 GW virtual power plant platform. A Secretariat team led by Managing Director John Morris provided competition analyses for NRG supporting the transaction.
Dr. Morris authored affidavits filed before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the New York Public Service Commission, which approved the transaction on November 14 and November 17, 2025, respectively. The Secretariat team also consulted with NRG on the Hart- Scott-Rodino investigation before the U.S. Department of Justice, which closed its HSR investigation on January 23, 2026.
Dr. Morris was supported by Managing Director Su Sun and Directors Jeffrey Opgrand, William Schwartz, and Wei Tan. Outside counsel for NRG included Bracewell, McDermott Will & Schulte, Read & Laniado. For LS Power included Milbank, Willkie Farr & Gallagher, McDermott Will & Schulte, and Greenberg Traurig.
Secretariat Active Across the Spring Antitrust Calendar
Secretariat’s teams maintained an active presence across the spring antitrust calendar, hosting an evening reception at Centrolina in Washington, D.C., on March 24, 2026, alongside the ABA Antitrust Spring Meeting.
The reception welcomed clients, colleagues, and competition professionals as delegates convened for what is widely regarded as Antitrust Week. Secretariat’s engagement continued with its sponsorship of the 15th Annual Antitrust Division Alumni Cocktail Party, held March 25 at Del Frisco’s and hosted by the Department of Justice Antitrust Division-Criminal Enforcement Alumni in conjunction with Hogan Lovells LLP, Latham & Watkins LLP, Baker McKenzie LLP, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, Linklaters LLP and Crowell & Moring LLP. Secretariat also sponsored the 24th Annual International Industrial Organization Conference (IIOC) on April 10-12, 2026.
Landmark Earnout Ruling in J&J-Auris Health Dispute
A Secretariat expert team, led by Managing Director Richard Manning, provided significant damages calculations and expert testimony in a landmark earnout dispute arising from Johnson & Johnson’s (J&J) alleged breach of its merger agreement with Auris Health, Inc.
The team’s work played a vital role in the Delaware Court of Chancery’s precedent setting decision that delivered a nearly $811 million award to Auris’ former stockholders—marking the largest earnout award in Delaware history. Retained by Selendy Gay PLLC on behalf of Auris (represented by Fortis Advisors), Dr. Manning provided expert testimony and presented a damages analysis that the Chancery Court adopted in rendering its decision following a ten‑day trial in September 2024. In January 2026, the Delaware Supreme Court affirmed the lower court’s findings as to breach of contract and fraud, and upheld the Court’s damages methodology.
Upon remand, the Chancery Court entered a final stipulated judgment of nearly $811 million. The Secretariat team working on the engagement with Dr. Manning included Managing Director Richard Brady, Director Kira Stearns, and Manager Jacob Miller.
Kyle Kost Explores Forces Behind Stock Volatility
When it comes to explaining stock market volatility, the story is rarely straightforward. Director Kyle Kost has co-authored a recent article, “Policy News and Stock Market Volatility”, published in the Journal of Financial Economics, which examines the complex drivers behind fluctuations in equity markets.
Dr. Kost and his coauthors revisit Robert Shiller’s 1981 finding that stock market movements cannot be fully explained by realized future dividends. They introduce a newspaper-based Equity Market Volatility tracker spanning 1985 to the present, constructed to align with the VIX between 1985 and 2015.
Their research offers new data insights into how policy news and broader economic developments shape market volatility, with further analysis applied to firm-level stock price movements and the correlation structure of returns.