The Draghi Report proposes substantial reform in the area of competition law, notably offering a critical assessment of recent policies implemented by the European Commission in merger control and antitrust enforcement. The...more
The Court of Justice of the EU (the Court) has overturned the General Court’s judgment in Illumina/Grail, effectively putting an end to the EC’s revised Article 22 policy approach for below-threshold mergers. Under this...more
9/6/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
EU ,
EU Merger Directive ,
EUMR ,
European Commission ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Global Dealmaking ,
Member State ,
Mergers ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
Until now, the European Commission's (EC) antitrust focus on labour-related issues has been timid. This may soon change. The EC has recently published a policy brief on labour markets, explaining that in its view, wage-fixing...more
5/23/2024
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Division ,
Competition ,
Corporate Counsel ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
International Labor Laws ,
No-Poaching ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) ,
Wage-Fixing
On 7 December 2023, the EC published new guidelines on when farmers and agriculture related businesses can, subject to certain conditions, enter into cooperation agreements on sustainability without breaching EU competition...more
The European Court of Justice (“ECJ”) has ruled that Hungary’s foreign investment screening law is incompatible with EU law, in particular the freedom of establishment enshrined in Article 54 TFEU. In striking down a...more
The fact that the European Commission (EC) classified resale price maintenance as a hardcore restriction under its Vertical Block Exemption Regulation does not mean that it automatically violates EU competition law as a "by...more
Advocate General Anthony Michael Collins has proposed that the European Court of Justice uphold the General Court's Altice judgment. In his Opinion, he considered that the entering into certain types of pre-closing covenants...more
5/11/2023
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Belgium ,
Competition ,
EU ,
EUMR ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Gun-Jumping ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Proportionality ,
Transparency ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
The long-awaited European Court of Justice's judgment in Towercast confirmed that national competition authorities (and national courts) can apply abuse of dominance rules to mergers that did not trigger EU and national...more
Advocate General Juliane Kokott has proposed that the EU Court of Justice should find that competition authorities have the power to apply Article 102 TFEU to corporate transactions that are not reportable, and test under...more
On 9 July 2021, the European Commission (EC) published for public consultation a draft revised Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (VBER) and draft revised guidelines on vertical restraints (Vertical Guidelines). The EC has...more
On 6 May 2021, the European Commission ("Commission") published a staff working document ("SWD") on its evaluation of the horizontal block exemption regulations on research & development and specialisation agreements...more
The General Court of the European Union (the "General Court") has confirmed this week that the eligibility rules of the International Skating Union ("ISU"), which penalized athletes participating in competitions not...more
12/28/2020
/ Arbitration ,
Athletes ,
Competition ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Eligibility ,
EU ,
Exclusive Jurisdiction ,
International Arbitration ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Sports ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
On July 29, 2020, the German Monopolies Commission published its 2020 biennial Report on Competition (Hauptgutachten XXIII: Wettbewerb 2020) under Section 44(1) Act against Restraints of Competition (“GWB”). ...more
8/4/2020
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Advertising ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Anti-Monopoly ,
Athletes ,
Competition Authorities ,
European Commission ,
Federal Cartel Office (the FCO) ,
Germany ,
International Olympic Committee (IOC) ,
Olympics ,
Sports ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
The e-commerce sector inquiry and inconsistent national case law and enforcement practice have illustrated the need for clarifications and/or reform regarding e-commerce restrictions. Even after the ECJ's Coty judgment, a...more
3/5/2019
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Anticompetitive Behavior ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Brick-and-Mortar Stores ,
Coty ,
E-Commerce ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Fashion Branding ,
Federal Cartel Office (the FCO) ,
Fines ,
Geo-Blocking ,
Germany ,
Guess ,
Internet Retailers ,
Keyword Advertising ,
Luxury Goods ,
Online Platforms ,
Online Sales Bans ,
Price Comparisons ,
Public Consultations ,
Retail Market ,
Sales & Distribution Agreements ,
Sales Restrictions ,
Selective Distribution Agreements ,
Split of Authority ,
Third-Party Service Provider ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) ,
V-BER (Vertical Block Exemption Regulation) ,
Vertical Restraints