European Commission ("EC") issues its first fining decision for a no-poach agreement, and also sanctions for the first time the exchange of sensitive information between a company and its competing, non-controlling minority...more
6/9/2025
/ Acquisition Agreements ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Competition Authorities ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Enforcement Actions ,
European Commission ,
Fines ,
Merger Agreements ,
Minority Shareholders ,
No-Poaching ,
Popular ,
Sanctions
The Situation: An investigation launched in 2016 by the German competition authority was meant to determine if Facebook was abusing its market position with its imposition of "misleading" data protection policies.
The...more
3/6/2019
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Competition Authorities ,
Data Collection ,
Data Protection ,
Facebook ,
Federal Cartel Office (the FCO) ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Germany ,
Instagram ,
Monopolization ,
Prior Express Consent ,
WhatsApp ,
Without Consent
The Background: The automotive industry has achieved a number of technological advances aimed at developing connected cars, automated vehicles, and ultimately autonomous driving. These innovations are expected to pose a...more
9/7/2018
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Automotive Industry ,
Competition ,
Competition Authorities ,
Connected Cars ,
Cybersecurity ,
Driverless Cars ,
EU ,
FRAND ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Monopolization ,
Popular
The Ruling: On December 6, 2017, the Court of Justice of the European Union ("CJEU") issued its long-awaited judgment in the Coty case, which clarifies the extent to which an online platform ban within a selective...more
The Ruling: The European Court of Justice recently provided widely anticipated guidance on the concept of excessive pricing, clarifying the use of key legal criteria in identifying an excessive pricing abuse under Article 102...more
10/27/2017
/ Competition Authorities ,
Copyright ,
Corporate Counsel ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Excessive Pricing ,
Latvia ,
Member State ,
New Guidance ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
The German Federal Cartel Office (Bundeskartellamt or "FCO") has published guidance on the requirements placed on remedies in merger control and their implementation. Remedies are an important instrument in merger control...more
In the European Union, Big Pharma has been operating with a target on its back for the best part of the last decade. Following its 2008 sector inquiry into the pharmaceutical sector, the Commission vowed to clamp down on...more
6/20/2017
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Competition Authorities ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Generic Drugs ,
Italy ,
Pay-For-Delay ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Pharmaceutical Patents ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Price Gouging ,
Spain ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
In April 2017, the European Commission ("Commission") published a tender offer seeking an assessment of the EU market for loan syndication and possible implications under EU competition rules. The successful candidate will...more
5/22/2017
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Banks ,
Borrowers ,
Comment Period ,
Competition Authorities ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
France ,
Germany ,
Government Studies ,
Infringement ,
Loans ,
Netherlands ,
Notice and Comment ,
OECD ,
Poland ,
Spain ,
Syndicated Loans ,
UK
The European Commission has introduced a new tool to encourage individuals to disclose anticompetitive conduct on an anonymous basis. Individuals are invited to supply inside knowledge to help the Commission uncover cartels...more