Background
In 2013, the European Commission (“the Commission”) prohibited the proposed acquisition of TNT by United Parcel Service (“UPS”) on the basis that the merger could lead to a significant impediment of effective competition for intra- EEA express small package delivery services and result in increased prices. UPS offered a package of remedies, including divestment of TNT’s subsidiaries in the 15 Member States where the Commission identified competition concerns.
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.
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 Commission issued fines totaling €6.5 billion in 2018, which is a new record and almost double the amount of competition fines in 2017.
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.
On December 11, 2018, the FCJ passed its long awaited judgment on the use of prima facie evidence in cartel damage proceedings.[1] In the context of damage claims resulting from the rail cartel, the FCJ found that plaintiffs can no longer rely on prima facie evidence alone to prove that a cartel caused them to suffer loss and damage. This marks a significant reversal of recent German case law.