Since 2020, our antitrust/competition practice has expanded the Dechert Antitrust Merger Investigation Timing Tracker (DAMITT) to include Germany and France. This supplements DAMITT’s U.S. and EU coverage with comprehensive...more
The Russian attack on Ukraine has triggered a total shift in German defense procurement policy. The German government has not only announced the introduction of a massive extraordinary defense budget of €100 billion, but also...more
Die Entscheidung des EuGH wird erhebliche Auswirkungen auf Unternehmen und Schadensersatzklagen nach Art. 82 DSGVO haben. Der Österreichische Oberste Gerichtshof (OGH) hat mit Beschluss vom 15. April 2021 (Az. 6Ob35/21x)...more
On November 26, the Dusseldorf Regional Court handed down a long awaited decision in the so-called automotive patent wars (case ID 4c O 17/19). The court referred heatedly debated questions in connection with the enforcement...more
Competition regulators have shown their ability to act quickly and decisively in order to help allay the worst impacts of the coronavirus outbreak. Could these responses provide a template for achieving environmental and...more
Implementer Hold Out - Another major development in global standard essential patent litigation was handed down today, as the UK Supreme Court upheld lower court rulings that forced an efficient infringer of essential...more
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
Last Friday, in response to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19), the German government announced various measures described as a big "bazooka" to avert a crisis in the Eurozone's largest economy. The German...more
Since the first enforcement actions have been initiated, some with significant fines, many companies may find themselves somewhat at a loss as they may not fully know how to assess the risks involved and how to react should...more
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
CARTELS & RESTRICTIVE AGREEMENTS - CJEU’S EYE-OPENING RULING ON ANTITRUST COMPLIANCE AND OFF-LABEL MISINFORMATION – C 179/16, HOFFMAN-LA ROCHE AND OTHERS V AGCM, 23 JANUARY 2018 – On 23 January 2018, the CJEU...more
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) recently ruled that a jurisdiction clause does not need to refer expressly to disputes arising from a breach of competition law where damages are claimed based on Art. 102 TFEU (i.e., for...more
When is pricing discriminatory? We reported in January 2017 on how a Portuguese Court had asked the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) to provide guidance on when “discriminatory pricing applied to equivalent...more
On 6 December 2017, the European Court of Justice (“the Court”) handed down its preliminary ruling in the Coty case confirming that a manufacturer operating a selective distribution system of luxury goods is allowed to...more
Consultazione - È possibile nell’ambito di un sistema di distribuzione selettiva vietare ai rivenditori autorizzati l’utilizzo delle piattaforme online? A questa domanda nel recente passato hanno risposto in modo...more
EU opens investigation into UK tax scheme for multinationals - The EU State aid rules are designed to stop Governments and local authorities giving companies a selective advantage, as doing so would create an unequal...more
On 14 June 2017, the EU Commission announced that it was opening an investigation into Sanrio, owner of the Hello Kitty brand. Sanrio have been accused by the Commission of an infringement of Article 101 TFEU, the prohibition...more
Single Market Withdrawal: A New Challenge to Brexit for the UK Government - Should Parliament have a say over whether Britain could remain in the European Economic Area?...more
On 19 October 2016, the Court of Justice of the European Union issued a judgment on the compatibility of German legislation setting fixed prices for the sale of prescription-only medicinal products by pharmacies with EU rules...more
On 19 October 2016, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued an important judgment concerning the German law on fixing prices of retail prescription drugs. In the case before the Higher Regional Court of...more
EU: Regulatory Scrutiny of Online Hotel Booking Continues - The 13 July 2016 saw the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announce that it had sent a questionnaire to a large sample of hotels throughout the UK. As...more
On 18 July 2016, Germany moved another step closer to enshrining a right for distributors in selective distribution systems to sell over online marketplaces. This is not sudden move by the German courts, in fact we have...more
BREXIT – BUSINESS AS USUAL...AT LEAST FOR NOW - What do you need to know? Despite the UK's vote to leave the European Union ("EU"), companies doing business in the UK can still continue to trade with the EU in...more
Welcome to March's edition of our EU & Competition Law Bulletin covering recent legal developments impacting upon you and your business: - ..United Kindgdom: Large pay for delay fine imposed by CMA. ..Germany and...more
On the 2nd March 2016, the German Federal Cartel Office (FCO) initiated proceedings against Facebook’s European and German entities, accusing the company of abusing its market power. The case follows a logical progression of...more