Amazon has requested the recusal of Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan, alleging that previous statements and actions indicate a "strong bias" against the company in antitrust litigation.
"Chair Khan has made numerous and highly detailed public pronouncements regarding Amazon, including on market definition, specific conduct and theories of harm, and the purpose, effects, and legality of such conduct," the retail giant alleged in the petition. "Indeed, she has on numerous occasions argued that Amazon is guilty of antitrust violations and should be broken up. These statements convey to any reasonable observer the clear impression that she has already made up her mind about many material facts relevant to Amazon's antitrust culpability as well as about the ultimate issue of culpability itself."
According to the petition, Khan has repeatedly asserted that Amazon is guilty of antitrust violations and should be subjected to breakup measures. The company argued that Khan's statements give the impression that she has already formed opinions and bias against Amazon.
Amazon's petition also noted Khan's association with antitrust advocacy group Open Markets from 2011 to 2018, during which Khan wrote several articles in prominent publications in which she advocated legal action against Amazon for antitrust violations, accusing the company of predatory pricing and unlawful mergers and acquisitions. The petition also mentions Khan's influential 2017 law review note titled "Amazon's Antitrust Paradox," in which she stated her belief that Amazon had violated antitrust laws and should be broken up.
The petition also pointed to Khan's involvement as counsel for the House Antitrust Subcommittee's investigation into digital markets. The subcommittee's Majority Staff Report, published in October 2020, contained detailed allegations that Amazon engaged in illegal, anti-competitive conduct.
The company also alleged that in May 2014, Khan urged antitrust enforcers to sue Amazon under the Robinson-Patman Act, accusing the company of "bullying" book publishers. In articles written in 2014 and 2015, the company said Khad suggested that the Antitrust Division targeted the wrong companies in a price-fixing conspiracy case involving Amazon.
The company asked that Khan be recused from any antitrust litigation with the tech company, saying that due process requires fair consideration of Amazon's defense by a neutral and impartial commission.
