Hill Wellford

Partner

Antitrust

“I work with creative people, risk-takers. When their moonshots succeed, they draw antitrust attention. To counsel and advocate for them, I first have to learn about the ways in which they are changing whole industries – that’s fascinating to me.”

Hill Wellford

Overview

Hill Wellford is co-head of the firm’s Antitrust group. Since leaving the DOJ Antitrust Division for private practice, he has focused on matters in energy, technology, pharmaceuticals, health care, media, and heavy industry, both in the U.S. and internationally. Chambers USA has called him “very strong” in antitrust and “one to watch.”

Hill’s practice includes matters in the United States and worldwide. He files dozens of “merger control” notifications yearly under the U.S. Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act (HSR Act) and parallel international laws, and each year defends several second requests (long-form merger investigations) in the United States and equivalent inquiries overseas. His non-deal work includes advising clients on some of the most hot-button current antitrust issues—including tech platforms/two sided markets, ESG/sustainability collaborations, and energy transition—as well as government civil conduct investigations and cartel and criminal investigations. He also counsels third parties involved in merger divestitures and has been appointed by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to represent agency-installed divestiture monitors and trustees.

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Experience Highlights

  • Mitsubishi Corporation in its acquisition for approximately $5.2 billion of the Haynesville shale gas producing assets of the Aethon companies

  • EVgo Services, an electric vehicle public fast charging network, in its $2.6 billion business combination with Climate Change Crisis Real Impact I Acquisition Corporation

  • The Grayson Mill companies, affiliates of EnCap Investments L.P., in their $5.0 billion sale of Powder River Basin oil and gas properties to an affiliate of Devon Energy Corporation

  • Google LLC in its $2.1 billion acquisition of Fitbit, Inc.

  • Southern Company, through its subsidiary Alabama Power, in its $622 million acquisition of the Lindsay Hill electricity generating station from Tenaska Energy, Inc.

  • Brookfield Renewable in its $1 billion acquisition of Scout Clean Energy

  • Energy Transfer LP in its $3.25 billion acquisition of WTG Midstream Holdings LLC from Stonepeak, the Davis Estate, and Diamondback Energy, Inc.

  • Group 1 Automotive, Inc., in multiple transactions with a total value of more than $1 billion, acquiring and selling auto dealerships and service centers

  • KKR in the $5.7 billion merger between Independence Energy and Contango to form Crescent Energy Company

  • Switchback Energy Acquisition Corporation in its $2.4 billion business combination with ChargePoint, an electric vehicle charging network

  • Live Oak Acquisition Corp. II in its $1.4 billion business combination with Navitas Semiconductor, the industry leader in Gallium nitride power ICs

  • Switchback II Corporation, an NGP Energy Capital Management affiliate, in its $2.3 billion business combination with electric transportation company Bird Rides

  • Quantum Capital Partners, KODA Resources, and QB Energy in their acquisition of $1.8 billion of oil and gas assets from Caerus Oil and Gas

  • FourPoint Resources LLC and Quantum Capital Group in their acquisition, with partners, of $2.0 billion of Uinta Basin oil and gas assets from Ovintiv Inc.

  • Sitio Royalties Corp. in its $4.1 billion sale to Viper Energy, an affiliate of Diamondback Energy, Inc.

  • Focus Financial in its $7 billion acquisition by Clayton, Dubilier and Rice

  • Global Infrastructure Partners in its $5.9 billion sale of Medallion Midstream Partners, LLC to ONEOK, INC.

  • EQT Corporation in its $1.8 billion acquisition from Olympus Energy of upstream and midstream oil and gas assets in Pennsylvania

  • XCL Resources, LLC in its sale to SM Energy Corp. of Uinta Basin oil and gas assets valued at approximately $2.55 billion

  • CrownRock L.P. in its $12 billion acquisition by Occidental Petroleum Corp.

  • Denbury Inc., a provider of CO2 pipelines and carbon capture services, in its $4.9 billion acquisition by Exxon Mobil Corp.

  • Quantum Energy Partners in its $5.2 billion sale of THQ Appalachia I Midco, LLC (“Tug Hill”) and THQ-XcL Holdings I Midco, LLC (“XcL Midstream”) to EQT Corporation

  • Jonah Energy LLC in its acquisition (together with several partners) of over $1 billion of Scout Energy Partners’ Hugoton Field and Panhandle oil and gas assets, including 10,500 operated wells, 7,200 miles of gathering pipelines, and the Jayhawk and Santana gas processing plants

  • Global Partners in its $213 million acquisition of multiple northeastern United States petroleum terminal complexes from Gulf Oil, Inc.

  • Black Mountain Sand LLC in its merger with Covia Energy LLC to form Iron Oak Energy Solutions

  • Blackstone Infrastructure Partners in its purchase up to $1.1 billion of equity interests in midstream company Tallgrass Energy, LP

  • Double Eagle IV MidCo, LLC in its sale for approximately $4.1 billion of subsidiaries and assets to a subsidiary of Diamondback Energy, Inc.

  • DigitalReef in its merger with Gamers Club to create Siprocal, a leader in monetization solutions for Connected TV (CTV), gaming, and mobile engagement properties

  • Altamont Energy, LLC in its acquisition by XCL Resources Holdings, LLC, which received the first FTC “prior approval” for an oil and gas transaction

  • HighRidge Resources, Inc. in the sale of its subsidiary FlexSteel Technologies Holdings, Inc. to a newly formed subsidiary of Cactus, Inc.

  • John Hancock in the sale of its interests in Texas Nevada Transmission, LLC to HICL Infrastructure PLC

  • MN8 Energy in its agreement with Mercedes-Benz and ChargePoint to create a new EV charging network

  • Enable Midstream in its $7.2 billion merger with Energy Transfer

  • Tortoise Acquisition Corp. II in its $1.4 billion business combination with Volta Industries, an industry leader in commerce-centric electric vehicle charging networks

  • Spartan Acquisition Corp. II, an affiliate of Apollo Global Management, in its $1.3 billion business combination with Sunlight Financial, a premier U.S. residential solar financing platform

  • DigitalBridge in its acquisition of a controlling stake in Vertical Bridge Holdings, the largest private owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructure in the U.S.

  • Representation of US financial company in obtaining favorable Business Review Letter from the DOJ Antitrust Division, approving new products and business plans 

  • Representation of Japanese auto parts company in cartel investigation by the DOJ Antitrust Division 

Credentials

Education

  • University of Virginia School of Law, J.D., 1995
  • Dartmouth College, B.A., 1992

Admissions

  • District of Columbia
  • Virginia
  • U.S. Courts of Appeal
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
  • U.S. Supreme Court

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Recognitions

  • Recognized, U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers 2017 Practice Group of the Year for Antitrust Law, Law360 2018 Practice Group of the Year for Antitrust
  • Chambers USA, Antitrust Litigation (District of Columbia), 2011–2019; Antitrust (District of Columbia), 2020–2026
  • The Best Lawyers in America© (BL Rankings, LLC), (Washington):  Litigation–Antitrust, 2016–2018, 2020–2023; Antitrust Law, 2016–2018, 2020–2027
  • Global Competition Review Award, 2025–2026
  • Legal 500 U.S., Antitrust: Cartel, 2019–2026; Antitrust: Civil Litigation/Class Actions: Defense, 2020, and 2022–2026; Antitrust: Merger Control 2017 and 2019–2026; Dispute Resolution: Corporate Investigations & White Collar Criminal Defense, 2025
  • Selected to the 500 Leading Litigators in America, Lawdragon, 2023–2026
  • Selected to the 500 Leading Global Antitrust & Competition Lawyers, Lawdragon, 2025 and 2026
  • Benchmark Litigation, 2025
  • Selected to the Washington D.C. Super Lawyers list, Super Lawyers® (Thomson Reuters), 2019–2025
  • JD Supra Reader’s Choice Awards, Top Author – Antitrust & Trade Regulation, 2023
Insights

Client Alerts

Q2 2026 Healthcare Antitrust and Competition Update

The pace of policy initiatives, legislation, enforcement actions, and private litigation related to antitrust and competition in the healthcare sector …

August 24, 2026

August 24, 2026 • 14-minute read

Client Alerts

AI Antitrust Issues Checklist

As artificial intelligence (“AI”) transitions from a nascent technology into a central pillar of the global economy, public and private …

June 1, 2026

June 1, 2026 • 8-minute read

Client Alerts

Q1 2026 Healthcare Antitrust and Competition Update

The healthcare sector accounts for an increasingly significant component of the U.S. economy. Healthcare spending constitutes 18.0 percent of U.S. …

May 19, 2026

May 19, 2026 • 11-minute read

Client Alerts

The HSR Act Applies to People Too: “Merger Control” Filing Obligations for Individual Investors, Family Offices, and Trusts

Every year, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) investigates high net worth individuals for failure-to-file violations of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust …

May 6, 2026

May 6, 2026 • 8-minute read

Client Alerts

State Attorneys General Get Two Big Wins: Two Court Decisions Highlight States’ Role as Key Antitrust Enforcers

In the span of a single week, state Attorneys General (“AGs”) secured two significant victories that underscore their important role …

April 29, 2026

April 29, 2026 • 4-minute read

News & Achievements