The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 will introduce groundbreaking new rules to regulate digital markets in the U.K. It aims to boost competition by controlling the conduct of the largest digital firms,...more
6/3/2024
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Digital Marketplace ,
Digital Markets Strategy ,
EU ,
Merger Controls ,
Pending Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Technology Sector ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 will result in a landmark overhaul of the U.K. consumer protection regime. It will dramatically increase the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA's) enforcement powers...more
6/3/2024
/ Competition ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Digital Marketplace ,
Digital Markets Strategy ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
Penalties ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Technology Sector ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 will in the main start to take effect in stages later in 2024 and will bolster the powers of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to enforce U.K. antitrust rules....more
6/3/2024
/ Antitrust Litigation ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Compliance ,
Digital Marketplace ,
Digital Markets Strategy ,
EU ,
Investigations ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Remedies ,
Technology Sector ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 has finally been enacted. It introduces significant changes to U.K. merger control and antitrust rules, establishes a new consumer protection regime and introduces a...more
6/3/2024
/ Antitrust Division ,
Competition Act ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Digital Markets Strategy ,
EU ,
Investigations ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
New Rules ,
Online Platforms ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Technology Sector ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
In a decision of major importance for litigation in the UK, the UK Supreme Court has held that litigation funding agreements (“LFAs”) under which a litigation funder receives a percentage of any damages recovered by the...more
Overview -
- The European Court of Justice (CJEU) brought back to life an old theory which allows acquisitions, which fall below EU and national merger control thresholds, to be challenged post-completion under abuse of...more
The EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) entered into force on 12 January 2023. It represents a massive expansion in the European Commission’s power to investigate inward investment to the EU. This new regulation—the first...more
Will 2022 be seen as the year in which the gates finally opened for damages claims in the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT)?...more
Quick Read -
- The EU’s jurisdiction to review mergers is no longer linked to notification. This is a big change and sharply reduces parties’ ability to predict antitrust hurdles to closing based on notification thresholds....more
On 18 May 2022, the European General Court rejected Canon’s appeal against a €28 million fine imposed by the European Commission in 2019 for its breach of EU gun-jumping rules, just a few months after a similar judgment,...more
The U.K. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is expected to be granted wider jurisdictional powers for merger control enforcement in legislative proposals mentioned in today’s Queen’s Speech. The powers derive from the...more
On 26 January 2022 the General Court (GC) issued its latest judgment in the Intel case, faulting fundamental aspects of the Commission’s original decision almost 13 years prior. The judgment’s findings are promising for...more
On 11 November 2020, the U.K. Government announced long-awaited and extensive reforms to the U.K. foreign investment regime.
The reforms proposed are more significant than anticipated and include a mandatory notification...more
In her first speech upon being reappointed as Competition Commissioner, Commissioner Vestager announced that a review would be undertaken of the Commission’s Market Definition Notice (the “Notice”); the consultation on that...more
10/12/2020
/ Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
EU ,
EU Merger Directive ,
European Commission ,
European Merger Control Regulation ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
On 1 July 2020, the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) published a statement outlining a series of regulatory initiatives aimed at Google and Facebook, focussed on digital advertising. This follows the release of...more
The U.K. Supreme Court has handed victory to a group of British retailers (the “respondents”) in a long-running dispute with Mastercard and Visa Europe (the “appellants”) finding that the default “multilateral interchange...more
On June 17, 2020, the European Commission published its highly anticipated White Paper detailing its “anti-subsidy tool,” aimed at rectifying supposed distortions in the EU caused by foreign subsidies. Stakeholders have until...more
Under the leadership of Margrethe Vestager, the European Commission has taken an increasing interventionist stand across all areas of antitrust enforcement, in particular in merger control. The EU’s General Court dealt that...more
The English Courts will continue this year to consider several issues that will shape the future of private damages actions for infringements of competition law....more
Key Points -
- Although Brussels has no power to approve or block FDI, the European Commission is urging a tightening of policy across the block.
- The Commission is signaling that it is responsive to calls for a more...more
The first wave of discussion about the impact of COVID-19 on EU merger control was very much on the practical and procedural. What, impact if any, will the response to this crisis have on the substantive assessment of mergers...more
How will European Competition Enforcers Respond?
The COVID-19 pandemic presents an unprecedented challenge to the economy and competition enforcement is no exception. Authorities at EU and national level may need to...more
3/21/2020
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Competition Authorities ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Mergers ,
Premerger Notifications ,
State Aid ,
State of Emergency ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
On 24 September 2019, the EU General Court (GC) handed down its judgment in HSBC v. Commission. Consistent with recent precedent, the GC reaffirmed the European Commission (“Commission”)’s duty to provide sufficient reasons...more
9/27/2019
/ Annulment ,
Cartels ,
Derivatives ,
EURIBOR ,
European Commission ,
Evidentiary Standards ,
HSBC ,
Infringement ,
Interest Rates ,
Settlement ,
Statement of Objection (SO)
Welcome to the 2019 Shearman & Sterling Antitrust Annual Report.
Our seventh edition focuses on the contrasting use by regulators of antitrust laws with respect to the FANGs, and how antitrust is being enforced in the U.S....more
7/24/2019
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Competition ,
Competition Authorities ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Criminal Liability ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Marketplace ,
Digital Media ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FinTech ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Leniency Programs ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
No-Poaching ,
Recruitment Policies ,
State Aid ,
Trump Administration ,
UK Brexit
On 27 June 2019 the European Commission imposed a fine of €28 million on the Japanese imaging and optical products manufacturer Canon for “gun-jumping” by using a warehousing structure in its 2016 acquisition of Toshiba...more
7/9/2019
/ Acquisitions ,
Breach of Competition Law ,
Canon ,
Competition ,
Corporate Counsel ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Merger Control Regulation ,
Gun-Jumping ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Toshiba ,
Warehouses