Regulation 2019/452 (as amended, the FDI Regulation) inserted the European Commission (the Commission) into a hitherto jealously guarded area of EU Member State authority – screening of foreign direct investment (FDI) for threats to security and public order. The FDI Regulation sets out minimum requirements for Member States’ FDI screening regimes and a mechanism for…
On 18 January 2022, Microsoft announced its future acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which will be the largest tech merger in the history of the United States. The press release voiced concern on a range of competition authorities around the World. Microsoft is one of the three contenders in the market of console-making and by acquiring…
Yesterday, on 29 August 2022, clearance for the FAW/Refire joint venture transaction was announced on one of the websites of the Chinese antitrust authority – i.e., the State Administration for Market Regulation (“SAMR”). That transaction marks the first case where Chinese merger review was handled by a local SAMR office. The foundations to this delegation…
With the much-debated reforms to Act 19/2003, of 4 July, on capital movements (“Act 19/2003”), the Spanish foreign direct investment (“FDI”) regime has been expanded over the past few years. However, FDI screening in relation to defense investments predates Act 19/2003 (and the recent FDI hype more broadly), and was regulated in Royal Decree 664/1999…
Case law has given rise to the concept of a Single and Continuous Infringement, providing for consolidating all actions and undertakings supporting an infringement. Including those with a marginal affiliation or effect, providing a doctrine of immense practical relevance. However, while the doctrine allows for solving practical issues, it does not dispense with the obligation…
In July, we outlined the new Government’s Competition and Consumer Law policy initiatives (click here). The Government has now moved forward with one of these initiatives, publishing for consultation a draft bill and related explanatory materials (click here), seeking very substantial increases to the maximum penalties for breaches of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010…
In recent years, there has been much talk of ‘due process’ and of ensuring a fair and impartial case handling by competition authorities. The EU Courts consistently stress the importance of respecting the parties’ defence rights but often end up siding with the European Commission. By finding no violation of the parties’ defence rights they…
The Competition (Amendment) Bill (‘Bill’) was first published for public consultation in February 2020 and it is only on 5 August 2022 that it has finally been tabled before the Indian Parliament. The Bill is a concerted effort to harmonize competition law with the evolving realities of businesses today. The Bill proposes to amend both…
The collective private antitrust cases in the so-called timber cartel keep many German courts busy. At the beginning of the year, the Stuttgart Regional Court rejected any claims for cartel damages in a rather blunt manner [Link]. Now, the Regional Court of Dortmund has heard the case. As Dortmund is located in Germany’s Westfalia region,…
Background The recent proliferation of foreign direct investment regimes (“FDI”) in Europe baffles practitioners and deal makers alike. Why is my acquisition of, say, a developer of grapes in Spain potentially subject to CFIUS-like rules? Can my carefully crafted leveraged buyout of a niche Polish producer of NFTs derail out of national security concerns because…
