On January 29, 2019, the FCO imposed fines totaling €13.4 million on the bicycle wholesaler Zweirad-Einkaufs-Genossenschaft eG (“ZEG”) and its representatives for fixing resale prices with 47 bicycle retailers.
The First President of the Paris Court of Appeal Ordered a Stay of Execution Regarding Injunctions Pronounced by the French Competition Authority Against Stihl
A chainsaw manufacturer cannot force its distributors to hand-deliver its products when the sale was made online, according to the FCA decision 18-D-23 of October 24, 2018. However, the first President of the Paris Court of Appeal ordered a stay of execution regarding the FCA injunctions which required it to modify the manufacturer’s distribution agreements.
J Sainbury PLC and ASDA Group Limited vs. CMA
On January 18, the CAT quashed the procedural timetable set by the CMA in the Phase 2 review of the Sainsbury’s/Asda merger. The CMA had given the parties a little over two weeks to respond to over 400 pages of working papers and scheduled the Main Party Hearings during the same period. The CAT found the deadlines were unreasonable and unfair given the volume and complexity of the papers, the CMA’s failure to engage in a longer pre-notification period despite the parties’ requests, and the overlap of the deadlines for the main hearing and response to the working papers. The CAT did not specify new deadlines, which were left to the CMA’s discretion, having regard to the overall statutory review period.
2018 Review
CMA Activity
As in 2017, the CMA leadership devoted much of 2018 to preparing for Brexit – publishing draft regulations, revising guidance, and increasing the CMA’s workforce.
Commission Continues to Target Aggressive Tax Arrangements for Multinationals
The Commission continues its policy of targeting aggressive tax arrangements for multinationals (Apple[1]—Irish tax benefits case; Engie[2] and McDonald’s[3]—Luxembourg tax benefits cases) as can be seen from the opening of a state aid investigation into a tax ruling granted by the Netherlands to Nike.
2018 Year-End Review: Record Amount of Competition Fines, Cartels Fines on the Decline, Increased Practice of Pull-and-Refile in Mergers
The Commission issued fines totaling €6.5 billion in 2018, which is a new record and almost double the amount of competition fines in 2017.
2018 Year-end Review: Record Amount of Competition Fines, Cartels Fines on the Decline, Increased Practice of Pull-and-Refile in Mergers
The Commission issued fines totaling €6.5 billion in 2018, which is a new record and almost double the amount of competition fines in 2017.
The French Competition Authority Issues a Notice Concerning Settlement Proceedings
Three years after the introduction of a settlement procedure in its legal arsenal, the FCA has issued guidelines on the conduct of settlement proceedings (the “Settlement Notice”). The Settlement Notice aims at clarifying the framework under which companies may be granted fine reductions in the context of antitrust investigations. However, several questions are still pending, including the determination of the final amount of the fine by the FCA’s Collège and the impact of settlement proceedings on follow-on damages claims.
DCA Finally Publishes Rossmann Judgment That Significantly Increased Fine for Vertical Price Fixing
On February 28, 2018, the DCA significantly increased the fine that the FCO had imposed on drug store chain Dirk Rossmann GmbH (“Rossmann”) nearly sixfold.[1] However, at the time, the DCA only issued a press release which left ample room for speculation about the precise reasoning behind the court’s decision to increase the fine. The DCA now published a non- confidential version of its judgment that provides further insights.