John Newman

John Newman serves as the Herbert Herff Chair of Excellence and Professor of Law at the University of Memphis School of Law, where his research centers on antitrust law and digital market regulation. A former Deputy Director of the FTC Bureau of Competition and DOJ Antitrust Division trial attorney, he has directly shaped high-profile cases against Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft. His scholarship appears in leading journals including Stanford Law Review and Texas Law Review, with commentary featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post.

Professor Newman earned his J.D. with highest honors from the University of Iowa College of Law, where he served as Managing Editor of the Iowa Law Review and research assistant to Herbert Hovenkamp. His academic journey includes tenured faculty positions at the University of Miami School of Law and international lecturing at the University of Tokyo Law School.

His research redefines antitrust frameworks for digital economies through critical analyses of attention capitalism, zero-price markets, and antimonopoly history. Key contributions include exposing 'The Output–Welfare Fallacy' in enforcement and documenting 'Racist Antitrust' failures. His work bridges legal doctrine, economic theory, and social justice, particularly examining how market concentration perpetuates inequality through frameworks like 'Antiracist Antitrust'.

Recent publications demonstrate consistent focus on evolving digital market challenges, with 14 major works from 2013-2026 addressing platform regulation, merger enforcement, and welfare standards. His scholarship reveals trends toward reinterpreting antitrust through political economy lenses while developing new metrics for consumer harm in attention-based business models.

• Professor of the Year (awarded by students)
• Multiple research awards from international scholarly associations
• Regular media commentator for CBS News, PBS NewsHour, and Bloomberg
• Senate testimony on antitrust enforcement priorities

Professor Newman actively mentors students through his Antitrust & Big Tech seminar and amicus brief practice, providing direct pathways to enforcement agencies. His advisory roles with the American Antitrust Institute and Institute for Consumer Antitrust Studies create unique research opportunities. Current projects include developing frameworks for 'Attention Capitalism' regulation and historical analyses of Clayton Act enforcement.

While not leading a formal laboratory, his research group operates through the Herbert Herff Chair infrastructure, collaborating with international scholars and policymakers. His amicus brief practice connects students with real-world impact, recently representing venture capital interests in platform antitrust cases. Future work focuses on political economy dimensions of digital markets as outlined in his forthcoming Stanford Law Review article.