A US judge has questioned the legal basis and fairness of a proposed settlement allowing Paramount’s merger with Warner Bros. Discovery to proceed, stressing that the court would not simply approve the agreement automatically. Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín has not given a timetable for her decision, saying it would come in “due course”, while requesting responses to Senator Cory Booker’s call for an independent public-interest review.

The settlement was reached by Paramount and 12 state attorneys general, who argued that blocking the merger permanently could leave Warner Bros. Discovery seeking another partner, whereas the proposed remedies would address competition concerns for five years. Booker criticised the absence of a competitive-impact statement, public comment period and formal input from affected groups, while Paramount opposed his submission; the hearing also examined whether the settlement resulted from an arm’s-length process rather than collusion.