Attorney General Schwalb Releases 2023 Impact Report

Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today released a 2023 Impact Report detailing how over the past year, The Office of the Attorney General has delivered for District residents, securing $610 million in total savings and benefits – over four times its annual budget.

Council Oversight: Delivering for District Residents

Yesterday, I testified in front of the DC Council’s Judiciary and Public Safety Committee for the Office of Attorney General’s annual performance oversight hearing. Oversight hearings are an important part of serving as an elected official, and this hearing was a chance to talk with the Council and DC residents about our work delivering for Washingtonians and making the District a safer, healthier, and more equitable place for all who live and work here.

Attorney General Schwalb Joins FTC Lawsuit to Block Anticompetetive Merger Between Albertsons and Kroger

Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today joined the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and a bipartisan coalition including eight states in filing a lawsuit to prevent The Kroger Company (Kroger) from acquiring Albertsons Companies, Inc. (Albertsons). In the District, Kroger operates Harris Teeter and Albertsons operates Safeway. The lawsuit argues that the proposed merger between the nation’s two largest grocery store chains is anticompetitive and likely to reduce options on where to shop for groceries, increasing prices of food and everyday essential items.

Attorney General Schwalb Announces $700 Million Multistate Settlement With Google Over Play Store Misconduct

Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb and a bipartisan group of 52 other attorneys general today announced that Google will pay $700 million to resolve an antitrust lawsuit involving the Google Play store. The lawsuit alleged that Google unfairly and illegally restricted competition for Android app distribution and in-app payment processing, limiting choices for consumers and driving up prices. As part of the settlement, Google will be required to pay $630 million in restitution to consumers nationwide and pay $70 million in penalties to the states and the District of Columbia. The District will receive nearly $2 million in penalties and costs of litigating the case, and the amount in restitution for residents will be determined through a claims process, to be announced at a later date.

Attorney General Schwalb Sues RealPage & Residential Landlords for Rental Price-Fixing, Illegally Raising Thousands of District Residents’ Rents

Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today announced a lawsuit against RealPage, Inc. (RealPage) and 14 of the largest residential landlords in the District for colluding to illegally raise rents for tens of thousands of DC residents by collectively delegating price-setting authority to RealPage, which used a centralized pricing algorithm to inflate prices, costing renters millions of dollars.

AG Schwalb Secures Over $2.3 Million from Suboxone Maker Accused of Monopolizing Opioid Treatment Drug

Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today announced that Indivior, Inc – which makes the opioid addiction treatment medication Suboxone – will pay the District approximately $2.3 million as part of a 42-state settlement that resolves allegations that the company orchestrated an anticompetitive scheme to block generic competition for Suboxone. The alleged scheme enabled Indivior to extract monopoly profits for Suboxone at the expense of District residents suffering from opioid addiction, who either paid more for Suboxone than they would have without Indivior’s conduct or did not receive the treatment at all.