As we have discussed in previous posts, the U.S. Department of Justice is aiming to prevent the T-Mobile/AT&T merger by filing an antitrust lawsuit. AT&T has been hard at work trying to combat it with a big lobbying push in Washington. However, recent remarks by Attorney General Eric Holder seem to indicate that the Justice Department does not want to budge.

There had been rumors of a settlement in the antitrust challenge, but Holder says he and his attorneys are "eager" to follow through with the case to block the merger in court, according to the Wall Street Journal.

AT&T's proposed $39 billion takeover of T-Mobile USA drew its share of critics, including the U.S. Government. Officials fear merging two of the four national cellphone companies would make them so powerful that competition would suffer, and so would consumers, who would potentially be faced with inflated prices.

The antitrust division may have reason to believe it could be victorious in court. Last week, it managed to block H&R Block Inc. from taking over a smaller rival. That was apparently the first such victory in court in eight years.

AT&T didn't comment on Holder's comments, but it has always maintained that the merger with T-Mobile would actually help consumers by expediting the rollout of smartphone high-speed Internet services.

The Justice Department filed the lawsuit to block the deal in August. At a hearing earlier this week, the Wall Street Journal reports, Holder reiterated that the matter is far from over.

Source: Wall Street Journal, "Holder says Justice is 'eager' for trial in AT&T case," Thomas Catan, Nov. 8, 2011