On July 24, 2020, the Council of State upheld three judgments issued by the Regional Administrative Court of Lazio (the “TAR Lazio”) in 2017,[1] which reduced by 60% the amount of the fines imposed by the Italian Competition Authority (the “ICA”)[2] in 2015 on three firms operating in the area of Belluno, in the Veneto Region (namely, Superbeton S.p.A., F.lli Romor S.r.l. and F.lli De Pra S.p.A., together the “Companies”). In contrast, the Council of State dismissed the cross-appeals submitted by the Companies that aimed to challenge the ICA’s finding of infringement.[3]
The French Competition Authority Fines 12 Cold Meat Manufacturers €93 Million for Operating a Cartels
On July 16, 2020, the French Competition Authority (“FCA”) imposed a €93 million fine on 12 manufacturers for their participation in a cartel in the ham and cold meat sector.[1] The FCA started its investigation in 2012, following a complaint from a slaughterhouse and a leniency application by Campofrio, a cold meat manufacturer. The FCA subsequently conducted dawn raids at the 12 cold meat manufacturers’ premises in 2013.
Competition and Markets Authority v Michael Christopher Martin
On 3 July 2020, the High Court handed down its judgment on an application by the CMA under the Company
Supreme Court Rejects Mastercard and Visa Appeal on Liability but Allows “Pass On” Appeal
On 17 June 2020, the Supreme Court handed down a much anticipated judgment concerning the default multilateral interchange fees (MIFs) set by Mastercard and Visa (together, the Appellants).[1]
Advocate General Kokott Opines on Pharma Reverse-payment Settlement (Lundbeck)
On June 4, 2020, AG Kokott advised the Court of Justice to confirm the General Court’s judgment upholding the Commission’s decision of June 19, 2013 (“the Opinion”). The aforementioned decision imposed fines of €146 million on Lundbeck and five other generic drug manufacturers (“generics”) for patent settlement agreements that prevented the sale of rival versions of Lundbeck’s antidepressant drug citalopram.[1]
Lexon (UK) Limited v CMA
On 28 May 2020, the CAT published the summary of an appeal by Lexon (UK) Limited against the CMA’s decision
The Paris Court of Appeals Upholds the French Competition Authority’s (“FCA”) Fining Decision Against Akka Group for Obstructing Dawn Raids
On May 26, 2020, the Paris Court of Appeals confirmed the €0.9 million fine imposed on Akka Group for obstructing dawn raids conducted on its premises, including by breaking seals. This was the second decision issued by the FCA for dawn raid obstruction and the first one for breaking seals.
FCJ Provides Useful Guidance on Umbrella Damages and the Passing on Defense in Cartels Follow-on Damages Cases
On May 19, 2020, the Federal Court of Justice (“FCJ”) overturned a judgment of the Munich Court of Appeal in one of the numerous cartel follow-on damages actions brought against members of the so-called Rail Cartel (“Schienenkartell”), this time by the Munich Transportation Authority.[1] The FCJ once more confirmed its decisional practice in the case of quota and customer protection cartels, according to which there can be no prima facie evidence that damages were incurred and/or whether individual purchase orders were affected by the cartel.[2] The decision had to be reversed, for the Munich Court of Appeal had based its decision on such prima facie evidence. Of particular interest is the FCJ’s reasoning on two other issues:
The TAR Lazio Upholds ICA Decision Concerning the Helicopter Service Cartels
On May 18, 2020,[1] the TAR Lazio rejected the applications for annulment of the ICA decision of February 13, 2019, brought by Airgreen S.r.l., Star Work Sky S.a.s., Elitellina S.r.l., Elifriulia S.r.l., Babcock Mission Critical Services Italia Sau, Heliwest S.r.l., Eliossola S.r.l. and the Italian Helicopter Association. By the said decision, the applicants were fined in a total amount of approx. €67,000,000 for anticompetitive conduct infringing Article 101 TFEU with regard to the award of contracts for forest fire-fighting activities.[2]
DCA Closed Cartels Proceeding Against Alleged Member of the LPG Cartels
On May 7, 2020, the DCA closed the proceedings against Propan Rheingas GmbH & Co KG (“RG”), an alleged member of the liquefied petroleum gas (“LPG”) cartel, thereby ending an almost 15-year saga.