The Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) governing post-Brexit trade relations between the UK and the EU includes provisions regulating EU-UK antitrust enforcement and cooperation effective 1 January 2021....more
In a webinar held on 10 December 2020, Skadden partners Sonia Nijjar, Simon Toms and Ingrid Vandenborre were joined by Charles River Associates (CRA) Senior Adviser and Deputy Chair of the Bank of England’s Enforcement...more
1/15/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Biden Administration ,
Competition ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Mergers ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Startups ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
The European Union (EU)-U.K. Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) governing post-Brexit trade relations between the U.K. and the EU includes provisions regulating EU/U.K. antitrust enforcement and cooperation effective...more
1/14/2021
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Cartels ,
Competition ,
EU ,
International Tax Issues ,
Member State ,
Merger Controls ,
State Aid ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ,
Withdrawal Agreement
The U.K. Competition & Markets Authority (CMA), which is on the cusp of becoming an independent merger regulator post-Brexit, is already known for its readiness to investigate global digital deals, issue freezing orders and...more
Following its review of a series of global deals in the digital markets space, the U.K.’s Competition & Markets Authority (the CMA) has launched a consultation on revised merger assessment guidelines (the draft guidelines)...more
Sustainability issues are increasingly high on the list of competition policy priorities both at the European Union and member state levels. The European Commission (EC) and national competition authorities are actively...more
In her opinion issued on June 4, 2020, Advocate General (AG) Juliane Kokott recommended that the European Court of Justice (ECJ) dismiss in its entirety the appeal by Lundbeck A/S and Lundbeck Ltd against the General Court’s...more
6/9/2020
/ Advocate General ,
Cartels ,
Competition ,
EU ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Generic Drugs ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Manufacturers ,
Marketing ,
Patents ,
Pay-For-Delay ,
Pharmaceutical Industry
On March 10, 2020, the England and Wales Court of Appeal (CoA) handed down its judgment in the appeals by the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Flynn Pharma Ltd. against a June 2018 Competition Appeal...more
3/27/2020
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Appeals ,
Competition ,
Excessive Pricing ,
Fines ,
Pfizer ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Reversal ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ,
UK Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT)
On December 4, 2019, Skadden hosted a discussion with Sir Marcus Smith QC, a Justice of the High Court and a chair of the Competition Appeal Tribunal (Tribunal). Sir Marcus has presided over leading cases in the U.K. on...more
3/27/2020
/ Antitrust Litigation ,
Burden of Proof ,
Cartels ,
Collective Actions ,
Competition ,
Damages ,
Discovery ,
EU ,
Judicial Review ,
Third-Party ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
On April 4, 2019, the European Commission published a report1 prepared by three special advisers (the Advisers) appointed by EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager to explore how EU competition policy should evolve in...more
4/9/2019
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Acquisitions ,
Big Data ,
Competition ,
Data-Sharing ,
Digital Currency ,
Digital Goods ,
Digital Media ,
Digital Single Market ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Merger Control Regulation ,
Information Reports ,
Innovation ,
Innovative Technology ,
Mergers ,
Technology Sector ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has issued its first antitrust decision since obtaining competition law powers four years ago. The decision is a controversial one....more
3/11/2019
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Asset Management ,
Competition ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Information Sharing ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Investment ,
Leniency Programs ,
UK
Skadden’s Antitrust and Competition Group and the economics firm Charles River Associates recently co-hosted the ninth annual “Antitrust in the Technology Sector: Policy Perspectives and Insights From the Enforcers” seminar...more
3/5/2019
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
AT&T ,
Bid Rigging ,
Cartels ,
Cloud Computing ,
Collusion ,
Competition ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Data Privacy ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Marketplace ,
EU ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FRAND ,
Innovation ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Monopolization ,
No-Poaching ,
Online Platforms ,
Qualcomm ,
Reputational Injury ,
Social Media ,
Technology Sector ,
Time Warner ,
Vertical Mergers
Despite a year of continued global political uncertainty and increasing enforcement, shareholder activism and foreign investment control activity, the 2018 outlook for Europe is positive overall. Skadden partners in the U.K.,...more
1/26/2018
/ Acquisitions ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Antitrust Injuries ,
BaFin ,
Capital Markets ,
Cartels ,
Competition ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Cybersecurity ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
EU ,
EU Market Abuse Regulation (EU MAR) ,
European Commission ,
Executive Compensation ,
Foreign Investment ,
France ,
Fraud ,
Germany ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Minority Shareholders ,
Money Laundering ,
National Security ,
Private Equity ,
Russia ,
Sapin II ,
Securities ,
Serious Fraud Office (SFO) ,
Shareholder Activism ,
Shareholder Votes ,
Takeover Code ,
Trump Administration ,
UK ,
UK Bribery Act ,
UK Criminal Finances Act 2017 ,
Virtual Currency ,
White Collar Crimes
Antitrust merger enforcement historically has focused on horizontal mergers — consolidation of two firms that compete directly in the same space. This is especially true in the U.S., where antitrust authorities have...more
1/24/2018
/ Antitrust Investigations ,
Antitrust Violations ,
AT&T ,
Burden of Proof ,
Competition ,
Corporate Branding ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dow Chemical ,
DuPont ,
European Commission ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Horizontal Mergers ,
Illegal Tying Arranegements ,
Innovation ,
IP License ,
Judicial Review ,
Life Sciences ,
LinkedIn ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
Microsoft ,
Multinationals ,
Qualcomm ,
Research and Development ,
Sales & Distribution Agreements ,
Tech Industry ,
Time Warner ,
Trump Administration ,
Vertical Mergers
On September 6, 2017, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) quashed the 2014 judgment of the General Court (GC) that upheld a fine of €1.06 billion ($1.5 billion) on Intel Corporation Inc. (Intel) for abusing a...more
9/8/2017
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Appeals ,
Competition ,
Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ,
Customer-Loyalty Programs ,
European Commission ,
Exclusive Dealing Agreements ,
Intel ,
Jurisdiction ,
Manufacturers ,
OEM ,
Pricing ,
Rebates ,
Set-Asides ,
Standard of Review ,
Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
The question of how "big data" should be treated in merger control and antitrust enforcement was a key issue for the European Commission and national regulators in European Union member states in 2016, with competition...more
2/1/2017
/ Antitrust Investigations ,
Big Data ,
Competition ,
Competition Authorities ,
Data Protection ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
EU Data Protection Laws ,
European Commission ,
Facebook ,
Federal Cartel Offices ,
France ,
French Competition Authority ,
Germany ,
Mergers ,
Privacy Concerns ,
UK ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
On October 21, 2016, Skadden presented a seminar titled “Antitrust Law and Policies From Brussels to Washington, D.C.: The Atlantic Divide?” in Brussels. Former DG Competition Director General Sir Philip Lowe gave the keynote...more
12/19/2016
/ Brussels Regulation ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Free Movement ,
Geo-Blocking ,
Merger Controls ,
Mergers ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
On October 6, 2015, the European Court of Justice (the ECJ) issued an important judgment clarifying the application of Article 102 to retroactive loyalty rebates (Post Danmark AS, Case C 23/14). The case, which had been...more
10/6/2015
/ Abuse of Dominance ,
Advertising ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Competition ,
Customer-Loyalty Programs ,
Direct Advertising ,
European Court of Justice (ECJ) ,
Mail ,
Monopolization ,
Rebates ,
Retroactive Application
US: Continuation of Aggressive Review and Enforcement -
In 2014, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) further embraced their aggressive approach to merger...more
1/28/2015
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
AT&T ,
Berkshire Hathaway ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
DirectTV ,
Divestiture ,
EU ,
EUMR ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Gun-Jumping ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
SierraPine ,
Strategic Enforcement Plan ,
Threshold Requirements
On June 11, 2013, the European Commission (Commission) issued a widely anticipated series of proposals designed to advance private antitrust damage and collective actions in Europe. To accomplish this, the Commission issued...more
On May 14, 2013, the French Autorité de la Concurrence (Autorité) issued a decision imposing a fine of €40.6 million on French company Sanofi-Aventis France (Sanofi) for an abuse of dominance in the market for the...more
The U.K.’s Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has issued a ‘government response’ or plan for reform indicating that the government will move forward with a number of substantial changes to the U.K.’s...more
If recent events are any indication, U.S. and European antitrust agencies will remain focused this year on the intersection of intellectual property and competition law. In particular, the agencies have concluded that under...more
1/30/2013
/ Acquisitions ,
Apple ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
EU ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FRAND ,
Google ,
Infringement ,
Injunctions ,
Licenses ,
Microsoft ,
Motorola ,
Non-Practicing Entities ,
Patent Assertion Entities ,
Patent Portfolios ,
Patents ,
Samsung ,
Standard Essential Patents