The COVID-19 crisis has resulted in huge demand for a range of consumer and other products, including face masks, hand sanitizer, paracetamol, bottled oxygen and ventilators. For companies manufacturing or reselling these...more
All companies are scrambling to respond to the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and in various sectors cooperation between competitors is seen as part of the solution....more
Hotel Group Meliá Fined for Active and Passive Cross-Border Sales Restrictions in the EU -
On 21 February 2020, the European Commission announced a fine of €6.7 million on hotel group Meliá for including restrictive...more
Brexit Has Happened: No Change for Now -
The UK left the European Union (EU) on 31 January 2020. The transition period provided for in the withdrawal agreement between the EU and UK is now in effect and will run, unless...more
EU’s Highest Court Confirms Wide Scope of Potential Claimants in Private Competition Law Damages Claims -
On 12 December 2019, the EU’s highest court, Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), confirmed that an entity...more
Dangers of Cooperation or Coordination on Purchasing -
Two recent cases demonstrate the competition law risks which can arise when competitors cooperate or coordinate in relation to purchasing. Competition law compliance...more
Textbook Long-Term Cartel Fined in the EU -
On 27 September 2019, the European Commission announced it had fined two canned vegetable suppliers for participating in a cartel that ran for more than 13 years. Another...more
Brexit is (or may be) Coming!
More than three years after the EU referendum in the UK (in which 37 percent of the electorate at the time voted “Leave”), it is still unclear whether the UK will leave the EU on 31 October...more
A Classic Online RPM Case in the UK -
On 1 August 2019, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced it had fined digital piano and keyboard supplier Casio £3.7 million for engaging in illegal resale price...more
European Commission Finds Predatory Pricing of Chipsets -
For the first time in 16 years, the European Commission has imposed a fine for what the Commission found was an abuse of dominance by predatory pricing. Any company...more
BE CAREFUL! PROCEDURAL ISSUES MATTER IN MERGER CONTROL -
The analysis of where to file mergers, acquisitions, investments and joint ventures worldwide is more complex than ever. Countries have widely varying jurisdictional...more
BE CAREFUL WHEN POOLING DATA -
On 14 May 2019, the European Commission provided a reminder that, although often pro-competitive and legal, in some situations data-pooling arrangements may be seen as anti-competitive....more
A Classic Online RPM Case in the UK -
On 11 April 2019, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced it had provisionally found that digital piano and keyboard supplier Casio has engaged in illegal resale price...more
It’s Up to You: Companies Must Ensure EU State Aid Is Legal -
If a company receives illegal State aid from an EU government or public entity, then it is at risk of being required to repay the value of that aid plus...more
On 7 February 2019, the German competition law regulator, the Federal Cartel Office (FCO), concluded a lengthy investigation into Facebook. It found that the company abused its dominant market position by making the use of...more
3/5/2019
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Corporate Counsel ,
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Data Privacy ,
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Facebook ,
Federal Cartel Office (the FCO) ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
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Consultation on Changes to Rules on Vertical Agreements -
The EU Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (VBER) is probably, in practice, the most important of the range of block exemptions which form part of EU competition...more
Resale Price Maintenance Rules Apply to Members of Purchasing Cooperative -
On 29 January 2019, the German competition authority, the Bundeskartellamt, imposed a fine of €13.4 million on ZEG, a purchasing cooperative. The...more
Clothing Manufacturer Fined for Restrictions in Distribution Agreements -
On 17 December 2018, the European Commission announced a €40 million fine on clothing company Guess for imposing illegal restrictions in its...more
EU Kicks Off Review of Critical Rules on Vertical Agreements -
The EU’s 2010 “block exemption” for vertical agreements is probably the most commonly used piece of EU competition legislation in day-to-day practice. ...more
First UK Award of Follow-On Cartel Damages -
On 9 October 2018, a UK court awarded damages in a follow-on private cartel damages claim. This is the first such award by a UK court and a major development in private...more
Risks of Information-Sharing at a Single Meeting -
On 6 October 2017, the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) provided a reminder that competing companies risk infringing competition law if they exchange commercially...more
Major legislative changes are poised to impact food and beverage companies across the EU. To modernize and simplify existing rules, and more effectively enforce compliance with health and safety standards, the EU adopted a...more
Restrictions on Resellers’ Use of Third-Party Internet Platforms -
On 26 July 2017, Advocate General (AG) Nils Wahl of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) handed down his opinion in the seminal Coty case concerning...more
Brussels-based antitrust partner Matthew Hall brings us an update on two ongoing UK antitrust class actions and one on the horizon.
Antitrust class actions in the UK are beginning to take hold before the specialist...more
More EU Investigations Into Licensing and Distribution Practices -
During June 2017, the European Commission launched yet more competition law investigations into licensing and distribution practices in the EU. The four...more