The U.S. Department of Justice has just created a new Antitrust Whistleblower Rewards Program. Introduced on July 7, 2025, the program allows whistleblowers to confidentially share their information with the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice and possibly receive an award. The program is designed to uncover possible violations of U.S. antitrust laws—actions that hinder free market competition to the detriment of various industries, consumers and taxpayers.
The Antitrust Division’s Whistleblower Program incentivizes whistleblowers to come forward: if the government prosecutes wrongdoers and ultimately collects at least $1 million from the violators, the whistleblower is entitled to an award of between 15 and 30 percent of the amount recovered.
While the 2020 Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act introduced protections to whistleblowers reporting criminal antitrust violations, the new Antitrust Whistleblower Rewards program offers financial rewards for doing so. The program is administered by the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Antitrust violations can be tough to uncover— the entities partaking in agreements to undercut market competition generally do so secretly. Yet these violations lead to detrimental effects on different industries and consumers. Examples of common antitrust violations include:
- Price fixing agreements (includes: agreements among producers to set a minimum price and agreements between buyers to reduce or set a specific procedure for the price they will pay)
- Bid rigging agreements (includes: bid suppression, complementary bidding, and bid rotation)
- Market division and allocation schemes (includes: customer and territorial allocation between entities to reduce competition — instances where competing entities divide the market by customer and/or geographic location, with the intention to mutually raise prices)
If you think you know something:
Call us at (212) 337-5361. Submit an inquiry on our website. Or email us at confidential@pollockcohen.com. We want to hear your story.
Sources:
- Justice Department's Antitrust Division Announces Whistleblower Rewards Program
- DOJ Antitrust Unit Launches Whistleblower Rewards Program
- Whistleblower Protection for Reporting Criminal Antitrust Violations
- Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act (CAARA) 15 U.S.C. § 7a-3
- Price Fixing, Bid Rigging, And Market Allocation Schemes: What They Are And What To Look For
- Federal Antitrust Crime: A Primer For Law Enforcement Personnel
- TAF Coalition statement (via email)
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