Competition enforcement, Competition policy, Digital competition, European Commission, European Union, New Competition Tool

, , , , (White & Case)/ /Leave a comment

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 Report will serve as a potential blueprint for Teresa Ribera Rodríguez, the Competition Commissioner-Designate and the European Commission to shape and execute competition…

European Commission, European Union, Foreign subsidies, Foreign Subsidy Regulation, Merger notification, Mergers

, , , , , , , , , (White & Case)/ /Leave a comment

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 Regulation (“FSR”) is the European Commission’s attempt to level the playing field for M&A deals by creating…

Australia, Brazil, Egypt, European Union, Merger control, Merger notification, Mergers, Ukraine

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , (White & Case) and (White & Case, Belgium)/ /Leave a comment

Key Highlights The Ukraine War: Merger filing activity in Ukraine was down 61% compared to 2021, but the Ukrainian competition authority throughout 2022 reviewed over 300 mergers and continued to initiate merger investigations. Brazil filing activity rose steeply, up 47% compared to the five-year average for the same period (January – November) and up 6%…

Abuse of dominance, Advocate General, European Court of Justice, European Union, Merger control, Merger Thresholds, Mergers

, , , , , , (White & Case)/ /Leave a comment

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 that provision whether the transaction as such constitutes an abuse of a dominant position. However, a competition authority cannot in…

European Commission, Merger control, Remedies, Standard of Proof

, , , , , (White & Case)/ /Leave a comment

On 18 May and 22 June 2022, the EU General Court upheld two European Commission prohibition decisions. Both judgments endorsed the European Commission’s assessment of the mergers at issue, recognising a broad margin of discretion in the European Commission’s evaluation of the concentrations’ effects and the remedies.   Key takeaways The EU General Court (“GC”)…

European Union, Merger control

, , (White & Case) and (White & Case, Belgium)/ /Leave a comment

On 13 July 2022, the General Court of the European Union confirmed the European Commission’s jurisdiction to review the Illumina/Grail transaction following a referral pursuant to Article 22 EUMR. The judgment is an important endorsement of the EC’s recent change in its Article 22 referral policy, and may embolden the EC to call in for…

European Union, VBER, Vertical agreements, Vertical restraints

, , (White & Case) and (White & Case, Belgium)/ /Leave a comment

On 10 May 2022, the European Commission (“EC”) published a new Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (“VBER”) and guidelines on vertical restraints (“Vertical Guidelines”) that will enter into force on 1 June 2022. The package introduces important changes for the treatment of distribution agreements under EU competition law, in particular to the rules governing the combination…

European Commission, HBER, Horizontal

, (White & Case) and (White & Case, Belgium)/ /Leave a comment

On 1 March 2022, the European Commission (“EC”) published for consultation two draft revised horizontal block exemption regulations (“HBERs”) on research & development (“R&D”) and specialisation agreements, as well as draft revised horizontal cooperation guidelines (“Horizontal Guidelines”). The EC’s stated aim is to make it easier for companies to cooperate in areas such as R&D…

European Commission, Information exchange, VBER, Vertical agreements, Vertical restraints

, , (White & Case) and (White & Case, Belgium)/ /Leave a comment

As part of its review of the EU antitrust rules governing vertical agreements, the European Commission (EC) has published for consultation a draft new section of its Vertical Guidelines, which contains proposed guidance on information exchange in “dual distribution” relationships. Reacting to feedback from stakeholders, the EC has adjusted the review test it proposed in…

Anticompetitive agreements, Cartels, Dawn raids, European Commission, European Union, Labour market, No-poach-agreement

, , , , , , (White & Case) and (White & Case, Belgium)/ /Leave a comment

In a speech on 22 October 2021, EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager revealed that the European Commission was planning a series of dawn raids for the months to come. She highlighted that the European Commission is not just looking to investigate traditional cartels, like price-fixing agreements, but also other types of anti-competitive conduct – such…