A report describes the Justice Department as preparing for an antitrust trial against Live Nation, the world’s largest concert promoter that also owns Ticketmaster, when President Trump stepped in. The trial was set to begin on March 2. According to the report, Trump told a senior DOJ official to settle the case, and the official later shared that directive with associates.
The intervention came after months of settlement talks between DOJ officials and the company that had produced little progress. Some in the government had pushed to break up the company. Trump had signed an executive order the previous year aimed at ticket-scalping and pricing practices in live entertainment.
Live Nation had brought in lawyers from Sullivan & Cromwell, the firm that represents Trump in personal legal matters. The report states that Boris Epshteyn, described as Trump’s private legal coordinator, had taken an interest in resolving the case. According to The Wall Street Journal, officials were said to be unsure whether he was working for Trump, Live Nation, or both.
White House meetings led to a rapid settlement
Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino met with Trump in the Oval Office on February 27. The report says Trump called the meeting to discuss bookings at the Kennedy Center and also asked why the company had not reached a deal on the lawsuit. The president’s directive to settle followed that meeting.
On March 5, Rapino returned to the White House and met with White House Counsel David Warrington and then-Attorney General Pam Bondi. He was joined by Sullivan & Cromwell’s James McDonald. The report states that Trump stopped by during the talks and asked how the matter was not yet settled.
By the end of the meeting, the two sides had reached an agreement. Trump later nominated McDonald for a major federal prosecutor post as part of handing top DOJ jobs to personal lawyers.
The deal allowed Live Nation to keep control of many amphitheaters and retain Ticketmaster. The report notes that the DOJ had previously sought to force the company to sell Ticketmaster. The six-page term sheet required Live Nation to end 13 exclusive booking agreements, give certain venues the option to sell tickets through competitors, and place a 15% cap on some ancillary fees.
It also included a $280 million settlement fund for states, with the total depending on how many joined. When asked about White House involvement at his July confirmation hearing, Todd Blanche said: “I wasn’t directly part of discussions, so I can’t speak to that. But I’m most certainly not saying they were not part of it.”
A DOJ spokeswoman stated that the settlement prioritized quick benefits to consumers over a long legal fight the department risked losing. “Artists are now allowed to use other promoters at Live Nation venues.
Fans benefit from service fee caps for concerts at amphitheaters and have new ways to obtain tickets on a variety of platforms,” the spokeswoman said. Trump has directed the department on other pricing matters as well, including calls to investigate why gas prices are not falling.
Live Nation’s Dan Wall said, “Our critics are comparing this settlement to the irrational hope of breaking up Live Nation and Ticketmaster. For the actual claims in this case, the DOJ and settling states got as much or more as they could have expected to win in court.”
He added: “The only reason we went above the Antitrust Division to senior DOJ leadership is because no one there would speak to us. When you’ve been unable to get a meeting for six months, you have every right to try something else.”
Most states in the case, including some led by Republicans, viewed the settlement as favorable to the company and refused to join. They continued to trial. In April, a jury found that Live Nation illegally monopolized the ticketing market for major concerts in the United States. The plaintiff states later asked the judge to break up the company.
The report states that the March 5 agreement created confusion in court. Live Nation’s top in-house lawyer later said he did not know the deal had been signed when he met with the judge on March 6.
The DOJ’s co-lead trial lawyer said in court on March 9 that he had only received the settlement that morning and had not reviewed it. Judge Arun Subramanian told both sides the handling showed “absolute disrespect for the court, for the jury, for this entire process.”
White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis said the president “has not weaponized the Department of Justice against his political foes or used it to help his friends. The Department is focused on restoring law and order and keeping Americans safe.” The White House referred questions about the litigation to the Justice Department.
Published: Aug 24, 2026 01:30 pm