The European Commission has published for public consultation its long-awaited draft Guidelines on exclusionary abuses (draft Guidelines). The draft Guidelines aim at making it faster and easier for the Commission to pursue...more
The European Commission (EC) has issued preliminary clarifications concerning the distortion test under the new Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR). These preliminary clarifications come only a year after the FSR came into...more
The European Commission has launched its first investigation into a non-EU country's procurement practices leveraging its new tool, the International Procurement Instrument. This investigation looks at the public procurement...more
The first months of application of the EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) have involved a large number of notifications, lengthy and wide-ranging requests for information, and the opening of the first in-depth...more
The EU's new Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR), which came into effect on July 12, 2023, marks the European Commission's attempt to level the playing field by addressing the potential distortive effects of non-EU subsidies...more
12/18/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Capital Markets ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Filing Requirements ,
Foreign Subsidies ,
Mergers ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Required Forms ,
Taiwan
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 EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism ("CBAM") reporting obligations started applying from 1 October 2023. As the first reports are due in January 2024, the Commission has released a list of some of the most frequently...more
The EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (the "CBAM") reporting obligations started applying from 1 October 2023. The final CBAM Implementing Regulation introduces further insight and key clarifications.
The CBAM...more
On 4 October 2023, the European Commission initiated an anti-subsidy investigation that could lead to increased tariffs on imports of Chinese electric vehicles to the European Union and has broader implications for the global...more
The EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation took effect on 12 July 2023 to much fanfare. We take a look at the top five things PE funds need to know when considering acquisitions with a European footprint.
The Foreign Subsidies...more
The adopted FSR Implementing Regulation contains important changes compared to the draft published in February 2023. The focus of the FSR filings for M&A deals and public tenders in the EU will be on companies' foreign...more
The application of the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism ("CBAM") is fast approaching for importers and manufacturers of products in the cement, fertiliser, iron, steel, aluminium, hydrogen and electricity producing...more
On 9 March 2023, the European Commission adopted the Temporary Crisis and Transition State aid Framework ("TCTF") aimed at boosting and retaining clean tech investments in Europe. The TCTF marks an unprecedented loosening of...more
3/28/2023
/ Batteries ,
Carbon Capture and Sequestration ,
Clean Energy ,
Energy Sector ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Economic Area (EEA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Renewable Energy ,
Solar Panels ,
Technology Sector ,
Wind Power
On December 13, 2022, the Council of the European Union ("the Council") and European Parliament came to a provisional agreement on the final text of a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism ("CBAM") regulation. The compromise...more
On 6 February 2023, the European Commission launched a four-week public consultation on the draft Implementing Regulation on proceedings under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR). Whilst the Commission has made an effort...more
On 8 February 2023, the CAT upheld claims by both BMW and Volkswagen confirming that the CMA cannot compel responses to information requests from companies with no territorial connection to the UK. In March 2022, the CMA...more
On 28 November 2022, the EU adopted the Foreign Subsidies Regulation, giving the European Commission powers to intervene to tackle foreign subsidies distorting competition in the EU internal market. The FSR, due to apply by...more
The EU "Fit for 55" package, if adopted, will significantly reshape environmental regulation in Europe, with impact beyond the EU's borders. In this alert, we focus on developments in two of the most impactful files, the...more
7/8/2022
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Carbon Taxes ,
Climate Change ,
Emissions Trading System ,
Environmental Policies ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Imports ,
Popular ,
Supply Chain
The General Court of the European Union delivered a blow to the European Commission in fully annulling its Qualcomm (exclusivity payments) decision of 2018 and a EUR 997 million fine. Qualcomm v Commission1 is the first...more
6/17/2022
/ Anticompetitive Behavior ,
Apple ,
Business Disputes ,
Business Litigation ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Due Process ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Foreclosure ,
Qualcomm ,
Right of Access ,
Third-Party
On 23 February 2022, the European Commission ("Commission") issued its long-awaited Proposal for a Directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence to tackle human rights and environmental impacts across global value...more
On 26 January 2022, the EU's General Court (GC) annulled the European Commission's (EC) €1.06 billion fine on Intel for abusing a dominant position with its rebate schemes. The judgment demonstrates that the European Courts...more
1/28/2022
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Burden of Proof ,
EU ,
European Central Bank ,
European Commission ,
Fines ,
General Court of the European Union (GCEU) ,
Intel ,
Rebates ,
Standard of Proof ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
On 17 November 2021, the European Commission ("Commission") announced a Proposal for a new Regulation to curb global deforestation and forest degradation driven by European Union ("EU") consumption of certain commodities....more
As a key part of the "Fit for 55" European Green Deal package, the European Commission has published its controversial proposal for a carbon border adjustment mechanism ("CBAM"). The CBAM, if adopted, will impose a levy on...more
On 5 May 2021, the European Commission ("Commission") issued a proposal for a far-reaching Regulation to tackle foreign subsidies, which, if adopted, will increase the regulatory risk for companies operating or investing in...more
5/10/2021
/ Competition ,
Corporate Counsel ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Foreign Direct Investment ,
Foreign Subsidies ,
Joint Venture ,
Mergers ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Public Consultations ,
Public Procurement Policies
On 25 March 2021, the European Court of Justice ("ECJ") dismissed all the appeals against the European Commission's decision to fine Lundbeck and several other companies for entering into anti-competitive patent settlement...more