John Malone, chairman of the board of Liberty Media Corp., will pay a $1.4 million penalty to settle charges he violated pre-merger requirements when he acquired Discovery Holding Co. stock, the Justice Department said.

The settlement, if approved by a federal judge, would resolve a Justice Department civil antitrust lawsuit filed yesterday in Washington, the department said in a statement. The suit was filed at the request of the Federal Trade Commission.

Malone is accused of failing to notify US antitrust enforcers before acquiring voting stock of Discovery, according to the Justice Department.

After submitting a corrected notification, he also allegedly bought additional shares without waiting the required time. Those are violations of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act and occurred from August 2005 though July 2008, according to the Justice Department. Malone declined to comment.. .