Melissa Holyoak
{{Short description|U.S. lawyer and politician}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Melissa Holyoak
| image = Melissa Holyoak, FTC Commissioner 2.jpg
| image_upright = 0.9
| alt =
| caption = Official portrait, 2024
| office = Commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission
| status =
| term_start = March 25, 2024
| term_end =
| president = Joe Biden
| predecessor = Christine S. Wilson
| successor =
| office1 = Solicitor General of Utah
| 1blankname1 = Attorney General
| 1namedata1 = Sean Reyes
| termstart1 = September 2020
| termend1 = March 2024
| predecessor1 = Tyler R. Green
| successor1 = Stanford E. Purser
| pronunciation =
| birth_name =
| birth_place =
| death_date =
| death_place =
| relations =
| spouse = Joshua Holyoak
| children = 4
| parents =
| residence =
| website =
| footnotes =
| education = University of Utah (BA, JD)
| party = Republican
}}
Melissa Holyoak is an American lawyer serving since 2024 as a commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission.{{Cite web |date=2024-03-08 |title=FTC Chair Welcomes Ferguson and Holyoak as FTC Commissioners, Congratulates Commissioner Slaughter on Confirmation to Another Term |url=https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/03/ftc-chair-welcomes-ferguson-holyoak-ftc-commissioners-congratulates-commissioner-slaughter |access-date=2024-03-18 |website=Federal Trade Commission |language=en}} She previously served as the solicitor general of Utah from 2020 to 2024.
Education
Holyoak graduated from the University of Utah in 2000 with a Bachelor of Arts and from its S.J. Quinney College of Law in 2003 with a Juris Doctor degree. As a law student, Holyoak was an editor of the Utah Law Review and graduated with Order of the Coif membership.{{Cite web |date=2023-07-03 |title=President Biden Announces Nominees to Bipartisan Boards and Commissions |url=https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/07/03/president-biden-announces-nominees-to-bipartisan-boards-and-commissions/ |access-date=2023-07-04 |website=The White House |language=en-US}}{{PD-notice}}
Career
From 2003 to 2008, Holyoak was an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of the law firm O'Melveny & Myers while her husband attended medical school in Baltimore.{{cite web |last1=Seariac |first1=Hannah |title=From the University of Utah to the national stage — one lawyer’s journey to the Federal Trade Commission |url=https://www.deseret.com/politics/2024/05/13/who-is-melissa-holyoak-ftc-commissioner/ |website=Deseret News |language=en |date=14 May 2024 |access-date=10 October 2024}} After spending several years as a homemaker raising her and her husband's young children, Holyoak became a part-time public interest attorney with the Center for Class Action Fairness in 2012. She served as president and general counsel of Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based public interest firm representing consumers challenging unfair class actions and regulatory overreach. Holyoak was one of the successful petitioners in the 2019 Supreme Court case Frank v. Gaos.{{Cite web |url=https://cei.org/blog/qa-on-frank-v-gaos-class-action-lawsuit-headed-to-supreme-court/ |title=Q&A on Frank v. Gaos, Class Action Lawsuit Headed to Supreme Court |date=2018-10-30 |website=CEI.org |last=Morrison |first=Richard |publisher=Competitive Enterprise Institute}}{{Ussc|volume=586|page=|date=2019|name=Frank v. Gaos|link=Frank v. Gaos|el=yes|source=https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/586/17-961/|docket=17-961}}
In September 2020,{{Cite web |last=Rodgers |first=Bethany |date=September 9, 2020 |title=Utah's new solicitor general facing potential court sanctions |url=https://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2020/09/09/utahs-new-solicitor/ |access-date=2023-07-04 |website=The Salt Lake Tribune |language=en-US}} Holyoak became the Utah Solicitor General with the Utah Attorney General’s Office, where she manages the civil appeals, criminal appeals, constitutional defense and special litigation, and antitrust and data privacy divisions. In that capacity, she oversees merger reviews, data privacy and antitrust enforcement actions, and provides leadership in consumer protection matters.
Federal Trade Commission
=Appointment=
A Republican, Holyoak was nominated by U.S. president Joe Biden in July 2023 to serve as a member of the Federal Trade Commission.{{Cite news |date=2023-07-03 |title=Biden names two Republican nominees for FTC commissioner, White House says |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/us/biden-names-two-nominees-ftc-commissioner-white-house-says-2023-07-03/ |access-date=2023-07-04}} Her nomination was confirmed by the Senate on March 7, 2024.{{cite web |url=https://www.congress.gov/nomination/118th-congress/801 |title=PN801 — Melissa Holyoak — Federal Trade Commission 118th Congress (2023-2024) |website=United States Congress |access-date=2024-03-25}}
=Commissioner=
In May 2024, Holyoak dissented when the Commission conditioned approval of the $64.5 billion acquisition of Pioneer Natural Resources by ExxonMobil upon the prohibition of founder Scott D. Sheffield from the company's board.{{cite news |last1=Krauss |first1=Clifford |title=F.T.C. Clears Exxon Mobil’s Acquisition of Pioneer Natural Resources |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/02/business/energy-environment/exxon-mobil-pioneer-scott-sheffield-ftc.html |access-date=30 November 2024 |work=The New York Times |date=2 May 2024}}Joint Dissenting Statement of
Commissioner Melissa Holyoak and Commissioner Andrew N. Ferguson In the Matter of ExxonMobil Corporation Commission File No. 241-0004, {{Federal Register|89|42878}} (May 16, 2024)
In May 2024, Holyoak dissented when the Commission decided to proceed to trial in its challenge to the $24.6 billion proposed acquisition of Albertsons by Kroger.{{cite news |last1=Sisco |first1=Josh |last2=Brown |first2=Marcia |title=Feds take grocery merger to court amid 2024 fight over high food prices |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2024/08/26/feds-grocery-merger-fight-00176231 |access-date=30 November 2024 |work=POLITICO |date=26 August 2024 |language=en}}
[https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/commn-holyoak-kroger-continuance-dissent-2024.05.29.pdf Dissenting Statement of Commissioner Melissa Holyoak joined by Commissioner Andrew N. Ferguson], In the Matter of The Kroger Company and Albertsons Companies, Inc., Docket No. 9428 (May 29, 2024).
In June 2024, Holyoak, dissented when the Commission issued a final rule banning non-compete clauses in most employment contracts.{{cite news |last1=Moreno |first1=J. Edward |title=F.T.C. Issues Ban on Worker Noncompete Clauses |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/23/business/noncompete-clause-ban.html |access-date=30 November 2024 |work=The New York Times |date=24 April 2024 |page=A1}}[https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/2024-6-28-commissioner-holyoak-nc.pdf Dissenting Statement of Commissioner Melissa Holyoak joined by Commissioner Andrew N. Ferguson], In the Matter of the Non-Compete Clause Rule, Matter Number P201200 (June 28, 2024). In August 2024, U.S. District Judge Ada Brown issued a nationwide injunction prohibiting enforcement of the rule.{{cite news |last1=Kay |first1=Danielle |title=Judge Blocks F.T.C.’s Noncompete Rule |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/20/business/economy/noncompete-ban-ftc-texas.html |access-date=30 November 2024 |work=The New York Times |date=20 August 2024}}
In September 2024, Holyoak dissented when the Commission conditioned approval of the $53 billion acquisition of Hess Corporation by Chevron Corporation upon the prohibition of John B. Hess from the company's board.{{cite news |last1=Godoy |first1=Jody |title=US FTC allows Chevron-Hess deal, bars John Hess from board |url=https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/ftc-allows-chevron-hess-deal-bars-john-hess-board-2024-09-30/ |access-date=30 October 2024 |work=Reuters |date=30 September 2024}}Dissenting Statement of Commissioner Melissa Holyoak In the Matter of Chevron Corporation and Hess Corporation, FTC File No. 241-0008, {{Federal Register|89|80561}} (October 3, 2024)
Personal life
Holyoak's husband, Joshua Holyoak, is a urologist. They have four children and live in Utah.
References
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Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:Solicitors general of Utah
Category:Women in Utah politics
Category:S.J. Quinney College of Law alumni
Category:Place of birth missing (living people)
Category:21st-century American women lawyers