Brussels associate Pablo Figueroa is the co-author of "Chapter 6 of the Cupla y Reponsabilidad," [PDF] published by Thomson Reuters (Legal) Limited in 2017, together with Maria Pilar Canedo Arrilaga.
Article | October 1, 2017
Brussels associate Pablo Figueroa is the author of "Immunity, Sanctions & Settlements 2017 – Spain” [PDF] originally published on July 14, 2017 by Global Competition Review Know-How.
Article | July 14, 2017
For decades, the Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") has sought and obtained monetary remedies as equitable "disgorgement" of ill-gotten gains. Disgorgement amounts have exceeded a billion dollars in both antitrust and consumer protection matters and routinely total millions or tens-of-millions of dollars.Gibson Dunn partner Sean Royall and of counsel Rich Cunningham recently published an article titled Will "Kokesh v. SEC" Put a Kink in the Federal Trade Commission's Disgorgement Hose?
Client Alert | July 12, 2017
The last 12 months have seen various strides towards increased protectionism at a national level in the UK and other European member states and also at a European level.
Client Alert | July 6, 2017
On the ten-year anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision addressing resale price maintenance, our experienced antitrust attorneys provide an overview of the current state of the law relating to resale price maintenance in the U.S.
Webcasts | June 28, 2017
This month, the European Commission ("Commission") has started the already expected initiative to open formal investigations into the e-commerce practices of companies active in the European Union.
Client Alert | June 20, 2017
Theresa May's decision to call a snap UK general election has backfired. The Conservatives emerged as the biggest party in yesterday's UK general election but lost their overall majority. Theresa May's authority and leadership have been greatly weakened, perhaps even fatally damaged, by the shock result. The Conservatives won 319 (down from 331) seats in the House of Commons. A governing party needs 326 seats out of 650 seats for a majority. The Labour party gained 29 seats, enjoying their biggest increase in the share of the vote since 1945. A so-called "progressive alliance" between them and such of the minority parties as have indicated a willingness to work in coalition with Labour would not be sufficient to command an outright
Client Alert | June 9, 2017
Brussels partner Peter Alexiadis is the author of "Forging a European Competition Policy Response to Online Platforms” [PDF] originally published in Business Law International, Vol 18 No2, May 2017, and is reproduced by kind permission of the International Bar Association, London, UK.
Article | May 1, 2017
The UK prime minister Theresa May has called a surprise general election for 8 June 2017. Earlier this week she won a House of Commons vote by 522 to 13 to override the standard five year fixed term between general elections.Theresa May is hoping the early election will convert her current working majority of 17 MPs in the House of Commons into a much bigger majority (with some predictions of a "landslide" victory). The prime minister says this will strengthen her hand in Brexit negotiations and provide the "strong and stable leadership" the country needs.Brexit negotiations will begin in earnest after the elections in France (the first round takes place on 23 April 2017, with the top two candidates facing each other in a second run-off on 7
Client Alert | April 21, 2017
While the legal industry and the markets will not know the precise contours of the Trump Administration's antitrust policy for a number of months, certain policy changes are likely.
Publications | April 4, 2017
As Judge Neil Gorsuch proceeds through the Senate confirmation process, we are continuing to review his jurisprudence while assessing how he might affect the Supreme Court should the Senate approve his nomination.
Client Alert | March 30, 2017
As Judge Neil Gorsuch proceeds through the Senate confirmation process, we are continuing to review his jurisprudence while assessing how he might affect the Supreme Court should the Senate approve his nomination. If confirmed, Judge Gorsuch is likely to play a pivotal role in the development of antitrust law, the focus of this alert, including in the near future, as a host of antitrust issues are ripe for the Court's review.During the course of his professional career, Judge Gorsuch has amassed substantial antitrust experience, both as a practitioner and a judge. As a practicing attorney, his experience included both defense- and plaintiff-side antitrust work. In one notable instance, he took an antitrust case to trial and obtained a $1.05 billion treble-damage awar
Client Alert | March 30, 2017
The UK government has today triggered Article 50 – the official legal notification to the EU that the UK is going to leave the bloc. This means that, unless otherwise agreed with the EU member states, the UK will be out of the EU by end March 2019.
Client Alert | March 29, 2017
As Judge Neil Gorsuch proceeds through the Senate confirmation process, we are continuing to review his jurisprudence and to assess how he might affect the Supreme Court should the Senate approve his nomination. We are publishing these analyses in a series of client alerts focusing on individual subject matters. This alert focuses on class actions.
Client Alert | March 13, 2017
China's antitrust regulators have continued to increase their enforcement of the Anti-Monopoly Law ("AML") in 2016. Given the high level of scrutiny in this area and the current legal environment in China, compliance with the AML should be a priority for businesses operating in China.
Client Alert | February 7, 2017
The Supreme Court (the UK's highest court) has ruled today that parliament must vote on whether the UK can start the process of leaving the European Union. The Supreme Court held by a majority of eight to three that the UK government cannot trigger Article 50 – the official legal notification to the EU that the UK is going to leave the bloc – without an act of parliament authorising it to do so. The landmark decision upholds a High Court ruling handed down last November. The UK government had argued that royal prerogative powers mean MPs do not need to vote on triggering Article 50. The Supreme Court rejected this. Withdrawal from the EU will fundamentally change the UK's constitutional arrangements because it will cut off the source of EU law: &
Client Alert | January 24, 2017
Antitrust authorities around the world are increasingly taking an interest in companies' hiring practices and compensation decisions. On October 20, 2016, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission jointly issued guidance for human resource ("HR") professionals regarding the application of the federal antitrust laws in this area.
Webcasts | January 24, 2017
Over the last eight years, the German economic recovery seemed very robust to any sort of political and financial turbulences occurring in the EU and world-wide.
Client Alert | January 13, 2017
The year 2016 has been another of continuing developments in the UK's white collar sector. These have ranged from the Competition and Markets Authority's largest ever fine, to the UK's second deferred prosecution agreement, to the continuing enforcement efforts of the Serious Fraud Office ("SFO"), National Crime Agency ("NCA") and the Financial Conduct Authority ("FCA"), as well as of a myriad range of other enforcement bodies.
Client Alert | January 11, 2017
2016 saw a continuation of some recent trends in criminal antitrust enforcement, including the growth of enforcement efforts outside the United States and Europe, continuing efforts by enforcers to increase their levels of cooperation across borders, and a continuing increase in the complexity and severity of the repercussions of collusive activity (traditionally in the form of criminal sanctions, but, more-recently, civil penalties as well).
Client Alert | January 10, 2017
It is too early to predict with confidence the direction that antitrust policy will take in the Trump Administration, because the President-elect has not yet announced who will lead the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice ("DOJ") or the Federal Trade Commission ("FTC"). But President-elect Trump's selection of Senator Jeff Sessions for Attorney General and an antitrust transition team consisting of former Antitrust Division Deputy Assistant Attorney General David Higbee, former FTC Commissioner Joshua Wright, and Alex Pollock of the R Street Institute suggest that some changes to the level and types of federal antitrust enforcement are likely to occur. We think antitrust enforcement and policy in the Trump Administration may roughly track th
Client Alert | December 6, 2016
Brussels partner Peter Alexiadis and associate Pablo Figueroa are the authors of "Skating on Thin Ice: The European Commission Challenges the Governance Rules of an International Sports Association as Being Incompatible with European Antitrust Rules" [PDF] published on November 9, 2016 by EUtopia Law.
Article | November 9, 2016
The UK High Court has ruled today that parliament must vote on whether the UK can start the process of leaving the European Union. This means the UK government cannot trigger Article 50 – the official legal notification to the EU that the UK is going to leave the bloc – without parliamentary approval.
Client Alert | November 3, 2016
Brussels partners Peter Alexiadis, Daniel Swanson and associate Alejandro Guerrero Perez are the authors of "Raising the EU Evidentiary Bar for the 'Single and Continuous Infringement' Doctrine" [PDF] published on November 1, 2016 by Concurrences Review Nº 4-2016, Art.
Article | November 1, 2016
Brussels partner Peter Alexiadis is the co-author of "The Advent of 5G: Should Technological Evolution Lead To Regulatory Evolution?" [PDF] published in the November 2016 issue of Antitrust Chronicle.
Article | November 1, 2016
On October 20, 2016, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice ("DOJ") and Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") (collectively, the "federal antitrust agencies") jointly issued guidance for human resource ("HR") professionals regarding the application of the federal antitrust laws to hiring practices and compensation decisions. The guidance focuses on HR professionals as gatekeepers, explaining that they "often are in the best position to ensure that their companies' hiring practices comply with the antitrust laws." According to the federal antitrust agencies, "HR professionals can implement safeguards to prevent inappropriate discussions or agreements with other firms seeking to hire the same employees.&qu
Client Alert | October 26, 2016
San Francisco partner Rachel Brass and associate Caeli Higney are the authors of "Practical Advice for Avoiding Hub-and-Spoke Liability" [PDF] published in the October 2016 issue of The Antitrust Source.
Article | October 19, 2016
The UK Prime Minister, Theresa May, has announced that Article 50 – the official legal notification to the EU that the UK is going to leave the bloc – will be triggered by end March 2017. This means the UK will be out of the EU by end March 2019. The UK will have two years from the Article 50 notice to negotiate the terms of its relationship with the EU. Theresa May has not given any information on the type of Brexit deal the UK Government will be pursuing. However, the Prime Minister insists that the UK will not "give up control of immigration again". The requirement for restrictions on free movement of people may make it difficult for the UK to remain in the EU single market.
Client Alert | October 3, 2016
Washington, D.C. partner Mark Perry is co-author of "The Interrelationship Between Price Impact and Loss Causation After Halliburton I & II" [PDF] published on October 3, 2016 in the Annual Survey of American Law by New York University School of Law.
Article | October 3, 2016
Brussels partner Peter Alexiadis is the author of Cartels in the Utility Sectors: An Overview of EU and National Case Law [PDF] published by Concurrences on September 7, 2016.
Article | September 7, 2016
Brussels associates Pablo Figueroa and Alejandro Guerrero are the authors of "EU Merger Control in the Pharmaceutical Sector" [PDF] published in the seventh edition of The Merger Control Review in August 2016.
Article | August 31, 2016
The European Commission's Competition Commissioner, Margrethe Vestager, has recently announced that she is pursuing a clear strategy of removing anti-competitive practices in the European rail sector under the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).
Client Alert | August 19, 2016
Worldwide, antitrust enforcement continues to spread and grow, with enforcement authorities in Asia becoming increasingly active and aggressive. By contrast, in the United States, where the Department of Justice's Antitrust Division has long championed aggressive anti-cartel enforcement, 2016 has so far seen less publicly visible activity.
Client Alert | July 11, 2016
This is an update to our client alert published on June 21, 2016 in which we addressed the possible legal consequences of a vote to leave the European Union in the Referendum held in the United Kingdom on June 23, 2016. Now that the outcome of the Referendum is known, we consider in this client alert some of the likely immediate consequences of that vote and its impact on anyone doing business in the UK.What happened on June 23?In a result announced in the early hours of June 24, the UK electorate voted, by a majority of 51.9% to 48.1%, to leave the European Union.
Client Alert | June 28, 2016
For the past few months, it has been impossible for anyone living in the United Kingdom to escape coverage of the Referendum on the UK's continued membership of the European Union. Whilst general coverage has been extensive and unrelenting, there has been considerably less focus on what might happen after a vote to "leave" (i.e.
Client Alert | June 21, 2016
Paris associate Gregory Marson is the author of chapter 24 of Dictionnaire des Régulations 2016, "Contrôle des concentrations économiques" [PDF] published by LexisNexis.
Article | June 1, 2016
Since our last update in March 2015, we have witnessed increasing volumes of M&A activity and a corresponding level of global competition law enforcement.
Client Alert | May 24, 2016
Hong Kong partner Sébastien Evrard is the author of "Civil Antitrust Litigation in China" [PDF]. This article was first published in Competition Law International, Vol 12, No 1, April 2016, and is reproduced by kind permission of the International Bar Association, London, UK.
Article | April 30, 2016
Merging companies today face the most aggressive global antitrust regulatory environment in decades. From the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission to the European Union's DG COMP and China's MOFCOM, authorities across the world are investigating an unprecedented number of transactions more vigorously than ever.
Webcasts | April 29, 2016
London partner Ali Nikpay and Brussels associate Pablo Figueroa are the authors of "Immunity, Sanctions & Settlements – European Union" [PDF] published on April 20, 2016 by Global Competition Review Know-How.
Article | April 20, 2016
2015 has been an extraordinary year for M&A on a global scale. Despite a 3.2% decrease in deal volume, total deal value reached US$4.3tn, an astounding 30.5% increase from last year.
Client Alert | February 24, 2016
Dallas associate Olivia Adendorff is the author of "Plaintiffs Face High Class Cert. Bar In Antitrust Cases" [PDF] published on February 8, 2016 by Law360.
Article | February 8, 2016
The rise of international enforcement efforts and sanctions, the intensifying impact of cyber breaches, the evolution of shareholder activism, and the growing complexity of regulatory requirements are all examples of the expansive array of challenges facing today's compliance professionals.
Webcasts | January 20, 2016
By the end of 2015, Germany has provided shelter to more than one million refugees that entered the country in the past twelve months, many without any documents of identification or even totally unregistered in some cases.
Client Alert | January 8, 2016
A comprehensive summary of criminal antitrust and competition-related enforcement activity across the world during 2015.
Client Alert | January 7, 2016
Denver partner John Partridge and of counsel Richard Cunningham are the authors of "Expanded Enforcement of Federal False Claims Act, RICO, and Antitrust Law Changes the Legal Landscape for Healthcare Providers" [PDF] published in the December 2015 issue of The Colorado Lawyer.
Article | December 31, 2015
Hong Kong partner Sébastien Evrard, Washington, D.C. partner Scott Hammond and Brussels associate Madeleine Healy are the authors of "Leniency Under the Hong Kong Competition Ordinance" [PDF] published in the December 2015 issue of Competition Policy International.
Article | December 1, 2015
Hong Kong recently commenced the final countdown towards implementing its new competition regime, many elements of which are inspired by competition rules in Western jurisdictions. On July 17, it issued a "Commencement Notice" for the introduction of a Competition Ordinance (the "Ordinance") which is scheduled to come into force in six weeks' time, on December 14, 2015.
Client Alert | November 3, 2015
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled today in a case concerning rebates and when they fall foul of EU competition law. BackgroundThe case concerns Post Danmark and, unlike appeals against European Commission Decisions, came by way of a reference from the Danish High Court seeking formal guidance on the interpretation of EU law relating to rebates. This is the second of two such cases involving Post Danmark, the first having been decided in 2012.
Client Alert | October 6, 2015
The UK Consumer Rights Act 2015 ("the CRA") came into force on 1 October 2015, fundamentally transforming the cartel claims environment in the UK, and introducing class actions (as US litigators might understand the term) for the first time to English law.Schedule 8 of the CRA creates a new collective proceedings regime for damages claims before the Competition Appeals Tribunal ("the CAT").
Client Alert | October 2, 2015