On September 3, 2024, the European Union’s Court of Justice (ECJ) issued its highly anticipated judgment in the Illumina/Grail case (C-611/22 P and C-625/22 P) concerning the European Commission’s (EC’s) power to review...more
As a new policy statement from the European Commission (EC) treats wage-fixing and no-poach agreements as inherently anticompetitive (restriction of competition “by object”) with few possible defences, companies should...more
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCC or the Act), adopted on 24 May 2024, empowers the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to regulate the conduct of major tech platforms....more
5/29/2024
/ Appeals ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Digital Marketplace ,
Digital Markets Strategy ,
Enforcement ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Noncompliance ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Technology Sector ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
On 25 April 2024, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced reforms to its in-depth merger control review process (the Phase 2 review). The updates include:
- An expanded de minimis exception. The CMA will...more
Starting today, October 12, 2023, the mandatory notification requirements under the EU’s Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) apply. M&A deals involving businesses that (i) have been granted certain levels of financial support...more
On 12 July 2023, the EU’s Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) entered into force. The FSR allows the European Commission (EC) to investigate and remedy subsidies received from non-EU countries that distort the EU internal...more
7/18/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Filing Requirements ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Foreign Direct Investment ,
Foreign Subsidiaries ,
Investigations ,
Investment ,
Mergers ,
Pre-Merger Filing Requirements ,
Private Equity ,
Required Documentation ,
Subsidies
On February 8, 2023, the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) and the High Court held in a joint ruling that the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) does not have the power under section 26 of the Competition Act 1998...more
The European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) was published in the Official Journal of the EU on 12 October 2022. The legislation, which regulates large technology platforms, enters into force on 1 November 2022 (20 days...more
Takeaways - Governments in the UK and elsewhere in Europe are demonstrating a clear willingness to exercise new and enhanced powers to review business transactions on national security grounds, including by calling...more
If you (i) receive some form of financial support from foreign (non-EU) governments, and (ii) have activities or are planning to acquire a business in the EU, then you will want to read on....more
7/13/2022
/ Competition ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Merger Control Regulation ,
Foreign Subsidies ,
Member State ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Public Procurement Policies ,
State Aid ,
State-Owned Enterprises
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) fined Facebook £50.5 million for breaching an order to hold separate its acquisition target, Giphy, pending the CMA’s review of the merger....more
The European Commission (EC) has proposed legislation to curb M&A, public procurement and market conduct by foreign-subsidized companies that may distort the European Union’s internal market. New requirements include...more
The U.K.’s Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) has released new merger assessment guidelines that confirm the U.K. regulator’s intensified approach to merger control.1 The guidelines largely codify the CMA’s recent output,...more
4/19/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Competition ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Digital Platforms ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Guidance Update ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
New Guidance ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
The Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) governing post-Brexit trade relations between the UK and the EU includes provisions regulating EU-UK antitrust enforcement and cooperation effective 1 January 2021....more
On 11 December 2020, the U.K. Supreme Court (the Court) handed down its much-awaited ruling in Merricks v Mastercard, dismissing Mastercard’s appeal against the English Court of Appeal’s April 2019 decision in a 3-2 ruling....more
Sustainability issues are increasingly high on the list of competition policy priorities both at the European Union and member state levels. The European Commission (EC) and national competition authorities are actively...more
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