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19 February 2019/New York City—NERA Economic Consulting is proud to announce that Managing Director James Mellsop and Director Dr. Subbu Ramanarayanan have been nominated for Economist of the Year by Global Competition Review.
The award is given to a competition economist whose superior technical skill, practical judgment, and excellence in client service in 2018 demonstrate that he or she is among the very best in the field. In announcing their nominations, GCR wrote the following about Mr. Mellsop:
James Mellsop is a [managing] director at NERA Economic Consulting and a highly regarded competition economist with expertise in complex New Zealand competition law issues. He is known for his ability to swiftly and clearly explain relevant economic issues and to present credibly and persuasively to the enforcer and in Court hearings. Mellsop provided economic support to NZME and Fairfax for their appeal to the country’s Court of Appeal to overturn the New Zealand Competition Commission’s decision to decline their merger application. He also provided economic analysis in support of New Zealand’s four major banks – ASB, ANZ, Westpac, and BNZ – in their successful application for the $190 million sale of payment terminal business Paymark to Ingenico. In the transport sector, he provided analysis for Auckland Airport in relation to the authority’s review of its pricing practices, and in the telecoms sector he consulted for Spark in relation to the enforcer’s market study.
In Dr. Ramanarayanan’s nomination, GCR wrote:
Subbu Ramanarayanan is a director in NERA’s antitrust and healthcare practices. He was the lead economist advising five hospital systems in eastern Massachusetts as they formed Beth Israel Lahey Health, which became the second largest healthcare system in Massachusetts with nearly $5 billion in annual revenue. The US FTC unconditionally cleared the deal in November 2018 after a nearly 15-month-long investigation; Ramanarayanan authored multiple submissions to the enforcer and testified during an investigational hearing regarding the deal’s projected efficiencies. In 2018, he also provided economic advice in the Ascension/Presence Health merger, which formed the largest Catholic health system in the US.
The polls are now open to vote and will close on 22 February at 12:00 am. View the entire list of nominees here, and cast your vote by clicking here. The winners will be announced at the GCR 9th Annual Awards Ceremony on 26 March in Washington, DC.