New US Federal Trade Commission chairman - Edith Ramirez - to be designated by President

President Barack Obama intends to designate Edith Ramirez as Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission effective Monday, March 4, 2013. She takes over for outgoing Chairman Jon Leibowitz, who has served in the position since March 2, 2009, and has been a vociferous critic of patent settlements, or pay-for-delay deals, between originator pharma companies and generic drugmakers.

“I look forward to working with my fellow commissioners and the able FTC staff to continue the agency’s proud history of promoting vigorous competition and protecting consumers,” said Ms Ramirez, adding: “I also want to thank Chairman Leibowitz for his strong leadership. I welcome the opportunity to build on his legacy of active enforcement of our antitrust and consumer protection laws.”

Ms Ramirez became a commissioner of the FTC on April 5, 2010. At the FTC, she has focused on promoting competition and innovation in the technology and health care sectors, protecting vulnerable consumers from deceptive and unfair practices, and safeguarding consumer privacy.