December 31, 2020, is the last day of the Brexit transition period under the Agreement on the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland From the European Union and the European Atomic Energy...more
10/6/2020
/ Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
EU ,
Exhaustion Doctrine ,
Free Trade Agreements ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
State Aid ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ,
Withdrawal Agreement
The European Commission’s (EC) June 2020 white paper proposing wide-ranging controls over foreign-subsidized companies’ access to Europe’s internal market has received fresh impetus. In a report issued earlier this month, the...more
Summary -
The European Commission (EC) has proposed far-reaching new powers to investigate and sanction foreign subsidies that have allegedly distortive effects on the European Union’s (EU) internal market. The proposals...more
In her opinion issued on June 4, 2020, Advocate General (AG) Juliane Kokott recommended that the European Court of Justice (ECJ) dismiss in its entirety the appeal by Lundbeck A/S and Lundbeck Ltd against the General Court’s...more
6/9/2020
/ Advocate General ,
Cartels ,
Competition ,
EU ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Generic Drugs ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Manufacturers ,
Marketing ,
Patents ,
Pay-For-Delay ,
Pharmaceutical Industry
In this series, “Critical Thinking in the Time of COVID-19,” our European tax practice examines the next stage of analysis for corporates that have begun digesting the economic and legal impact of COVID-19 on their...more
4/6/2020
/ Compliance ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Taxes ,
EU ,
France ,
Germany ,
International Tax Issues ,
Lobbying ,
Social Insurance Contributions ,
State Aid ,
UK
State measures to combat the spread of COVID-19 have brought many countries across Europe to a standstill. While health care systems struggle to respond, the pandemic has also provided “a major shock for our economies.”1...more
3/31/2020
/ Antitrust Violations ,
Collaboration ,
Competition Authorities ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Foreign Investment ,
Merger Controls ,
National Security ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
State Aid ,
Supply Chain ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
On December 4, 2019, Skadden hosted a discussion with Sir Marcus Smith QC, a Justice of the High Court and a chair of the Competition Appeal Tribunal (Tribunal). Sir Marcus has presided over leading cases in the U.K. on...more
3/27/2020
/ Antitrust Litigation ,
Burden of Proof ,
Cartels ,
Collective Actions ,
Competition ,
Damages ,
Discovery ,
EU ,
Judicial Review ,
Third-Party ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads rapidly around the world, and countries take unprecedented measures to contain the spread of the disease, businesses are increasingly struggling with the economic impact of this crisis. While...more
The U.K. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has published “Guidance on the Functions of the CMA Under the Withdrawal Agreement” (Guidance), which sets out the regulator’s approach to merger and competition cases during...more
2/13/2020
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Cartels ,
Condition Precedent ,
Corporate Counsel ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Exclusive Jurisdiction ,
Jurisdiction ,
Long Arm Statute ,
Merger Reviews ,
Mergers ,
One-Stop Shop ,
Parallel Proceedings ,
Transitional Arrangements ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ,
Withdrawal Agreement
On April 4, 2019, the European Commission published a report1 prepared by three special advisers (the Advisers) appointed by EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager to explore how EU competition policy should evolve in...more
4/9/2019
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Acquisitions ,
Big Data ,
Competition ,
Data-Sharing ,
Digital Currency ,
Digital Goods ,
Digital Media ,
Digital Single Market ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Merger Control Regulation ,
Information Reports ,
Innovation ,
Innovative Technology ,
Mergers ,
Technology Sector ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
As the U.K.’s March 29, 2019, exit date from the European Union approaches, companies involved in merger reviews or antitrust investigations should pre-emptively address the risk of a “no-deal” Brexit....more
10/18/2018
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Injuries ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Condition Precedent ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Merger Control Regulation ,
Infringement ,
Jurisdiction ,
Merger Agreements ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Private Right of Action ,
Statute of Limitations ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
On September 26, 2018, the EU General Court (the Court) upheld the European Commission’s refusal to reinvestigate GlaxoSmithKline SA’s (GSK) Spanish “dual-pricing” distribution arrangements, 20 years after the alleged conduct...more
10/5/2018
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Competition Authorities ,
Dual-Pricing ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
General Court of the European Union (GCEU) ,
GlaxoSmithKline ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Sales & Distribution Agreements ,
Spain ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
On August 20, 2018, the U.K. government published further details of its negotiation position with the European Union on state aid post-Brexit. Three days later, it published guidance on state aid in case the U.K. leaves the...more
On July 18, 2018, the European Commission (Commission) imposed a fine on Google LLC for the alleged abuse of a dominant market position pertaining to Android mobile devices. Google and its parent company, Alphabet Inc....more
7/30/2018
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Advertising ,
Android ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Cease and Desist ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Economic Area (EEA) ,
Fines ,
Google ,
Illegal Tying Arranegements ,
Incentives ,
Mobile Devices ,
Product Exclusivity
Skadden’s Antitrust and Competition Group and the economics firm Charles River Associates recently hosted the eighth annual “Antitrust in the Technology Sector: Policy Perspectives and Insights From the Enforcers” seminar in...more
3/8/2018
/ Anticompetitive Behavior ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Big Data ,
Cartels ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fines ,
FRAND ,
Gun-Jumping ,
Innovation ,
Mergers ,
Monopolization ,
Standard Essential Patents ,
Technology Sector
On November 23, 2017, the Court of Justice of the European Union (Court of Justice) dealt a blow to the European Commission’s (Commission) power to close antitrust investigations with commitment decisions, with its ruling in...more
11/29/2017
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Commitment Decisions ,
Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Judicial Discretion ,
Oil & Gas ,
Supply Contracts ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) ,
Void and Unenforceable
On 26 October 2017, the European Commission (the Commission) opened an in-depth investigation into UK statutory rules that exempt certain financing income earned by foreign subsidiaries of UK corporate taxpayers from UK tax....more
10/31/2017
/ Anti-Avoidance ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Business Income ,
Controlled Foreign Corporations ,
Corporate Taxes ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Financing ,
Foreign Subsidiaries ,
Multinationals ,
State Aid ,
Statutory Requirements ,
Tax Exemptions ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
In recent years, the European Commission (EC) has been actively enforcing European Union state aid violations, an area of law that is unique to Europe but has wide-ranging implications for multinationals with investments in...more
9/20/2017
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Foreign Investment ,
Infrastructure Financing ,
Member State ,
Mergers ,
Multinationals ,
State Aid ,
Tax Structuring
On 23 July 2017, the UK House of Lords’ EU Internal Market Sub-Committee launched an inquiry into the future of the enforcement of the UK’s competition rules once the UK leaves the European Union. Interested parties are...more
On 10 May 2017, two years after launching its e-commerce sector inquiry on 6 May 2015, the European Commission published its final report (Final Report) on the inquiry. The inquiry was opened in the framework of the...more
6/5/2017
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Digital Single Market ,
E-Commerce ,
Electronics ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Economic Area (EEA) ,
Final Rules ,
Geo-Blocking ,
Holidays ,
Hotels ,
Member State ,
UK ,
Video Games
On May 10, 2016, the French Competition Authority and German Federal Cartel Office published “Competition Law and Data,” a joint report on big data and its implications for competition law. The paper identifies issues that...more
5/19/2016
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Big Data ,
Competition Authorities ,
EU ,
Exclusivity Clauses ,
Federal Cartel Office (the FCO) ,
French Competition Authority ,
Mergers ,
Popular ,
Tying ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
On January 20, 2016, the Court of Justice of the European Union issued a judgment reaffirming the independence of the cartel immunity and leniency regimes of the EU and member states. The ruling reasserts the obligation of...more
US: Continuation of Aggressive Review and Enforcement -
In 2014, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) further embraced their aggressive approach to merger...more
1/28/2015
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
AT&T ,
Berkshire Hathaway ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
DirectTV ,
Divestiture ,
EU ,
EUMR ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Gun-Jumping ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
SierraPine ,
Strategic Enforcement Plan ,
Threshold Requirements
On July 9, 2014, the European Commission published its proposal (White Paper) outlining the approach it intends to adopt with respect to the application of the EU Merger Regulation (EUMR) to the acquisition of minority...more
On April 17, 2014, the European Parliament overwhelmingly approved the European Commission’s proposal for a directive on private antitrust damages actions (the Directive). The Directive is intended to facilitate antitrust...more