Antitrust

OFT/CC merger - a system with mixed motives?

By Legal Week | October 20, 2010

One of the worst-kept secrets in the world of competition law became official last week: the UK Government is planning to merge the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and the Competition Commission (CC). Along with the Advisory Committee on Historic Wreck Sites, the Pesticides Residues Committee and the Zoos Forum, these pillars of the UK competition system have been singled out for attention in Vince Cable's bonfire of the quangos.

1 minute read

Competition lawyers gear up for merger of OFT and Competition Commission

By Friederike Heine | October 14, 2010

Competition lawyers are gearing up for the biggest shake-up in the UK's antitrust regime for years following confirmation today (14 October) that the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and the Competition Commission (CC) are set to merge. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) announced the move as part of the new coalition Government's move to streamline the work of public bodies - a policy dubbed 'the bonfire of the quangos'.

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Brick Court QC opts for move to Serle Court

By Friederike Heine | October 8, 2010

Brick Court Chambers silk Conor Quigley QC has made the unusual move of leaving the set for a move to commercial chambers Serle Court. EU law specialist Quigley, who took silk in 2003, joined Serle Court on 1 October.

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CC Brussels partner chosen to lead office alongside practice chief role

By Suzi Ring | October 7, 2010

Clifford Chance (CC) has elected a new managing partner for its Brussels office, as current incumbent Yves Herinckx prepares to step down after 14 years in the role. Herinckx will be replaced by Brussels head of EU and competition Tony Reeves in November, with Reeves set to remain as head of the practice group alongside his new role. Herinckx will continue as head of finance in Belgium, a post he has held simultaneously with his role as Brussels chief.

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Akzo ruling threatens an evidential Russian roulette

By Legal Week | October 6, 2010

The European Court of Justice's (ECJ's) judgment in Akzo Nobel Chemicals & Others v European Commission last month confirmed that for the purposes of European Union law, legal professional privilege will not apply to communications between in-house counsel and their clients. For a judgment that has essentially left the law unchanged, it has generated considerable adverse comment. It gets it wrong in a number of fundamental ways and, arguably, leaves the European Commission (EC) - whose work it primarily affects - on a collision course with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

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Lawyers on alert as competition bodies issue joint M&A guidance for first time

By Friederike Heine | September 22, 2010

The Competition Commission and the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) have published joint merger assessment guidelines for the first time, in a move which has intensified speculation that the two bodies could merge to form a single oversight body. The joint guidelines, which were published last week (16 September), have been created to provide greater clarity to companies and their advisers on how both bodies will assess the competitive impact of a merger. The guidelines revise and expand guidance previously issued separately by the two watchdogs, with partners at City firms praising the move as a "productive step forward".

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Europe's top court rejects case for in-house privilege

By Friederike Heine | September 14, 2010

The battle to extend privilege for in-house lawyers in Europe has suffered a major blow after a ruling from the European Court of Justice (ECJ) today (14 September) stated that company legal teams are not protected in competition cases. The ECJ rejected arguments made by Dutch chemicals group Akzo Nobel that a lower court was wrong to find that communications involving in-house legal counsel are not covered by lawyer-client confidentiality.

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Freshfields names new antitrust and competition group co-heads

By Sofia Lind | September 7, 2010

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has appointed new co-heads for its global competition, antitrust and trade practice. The firm has chosen Brussels and City-based partner John Davies and Duesseldorf managing partner Martin Klusman as the new co-leaders of the 250-lawyer group, with the duo succeeding incumbents David Aitman and Helmut Bergmann as of next week (15 September).

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Norton Rose hires Linklaters practice chief for Italy antitrust launch

By Suzi Ring | September 7, 2010

Norton Rose is set to launch an antitrust, regulatory and competition practice in Italy with the hire of Linklaters' competition and antitrust head in the country. Andrea Zulli, who was a managing associate in Linklaters' Milan base, will join Norton Rose's local office as a partner in the coming months. He relocated to the region from London in May 2009 to launch a competition and antitrust practice for Linklaters.

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Howrey partner duo depart for Olswang and McDermott in Brussels

By Suzi Ring | September 1, 2010

Two partners have left Howrey's Brussels office to join Olswang and McDermott Will & Emery in the Belgian capital. Patricia Cappuyns joins Olswang's intellectual property (IP) group today (1 September) after five years at Howrey, where she made partner in January 2009. Her client portfolio includes MEGA Brands, DSM, Sara Lee and Elvis Presley Enterprises.

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Law.com

Compliance Hot Spots: New Hires Out of DOJ Antitrust Division + Kramer Levin Launches Congressional Investigations Group + Kirkland & Ellis in FTC Consumer Protection Settlement

By Andrew Goudsward | September 7, 2022

Cooley and Axinn landed senior DOJ antitrust officials who recently made the move to private practice.

8 minute read

New Jersey Law Journal

Antitrust Action Takes Aim at RWJ Barnabas Health

By ALM Staff | September 7, 2022

This suit was surfaced by Law.com Radar. Read the document here.

1 minute read

National Law Journal

DOJ Antitrust Enforcer Joins Cooley in DC

By Dan Packel | September 7, 2022

Kathy O'Neill was the senior director of investigations and litigation in the DOJ's Antitrust Division, the top-ranking career civil antitrust attorney in the unit.

2 minute read

National Law Journal

Skadden Drops TikTok Work in Meta Antitrust Lawsuit

By Andrew Goudsward | September 2, 2022

The firm entered the case last month to argue that Meta's in-house lawyers shouldn't have access to TikTok's confidential information.

2 minute read

Corporate Counsel

Four Ways to Reduce Risk as Data Privacy Concerns Turn Up the Volume

By Joey Seeber | September 1, 2022

With its July 2021 executive order, the Biden administration expanded the scrutiny of mergers and acquisitions to consider the potential impact of the accumulation of consumers' personal information under one roof.

6 minute read

Texas Lawyer

5th Circuit: Texas Has Most Protectionist Electric Power Law of Any State

By Adolfo Pesquera | August 31, 2022

"No other state completely bars out-of-state entrants or allows an incumbent to designate its replacement if it declines a project," the Fifth Circuit observed.

5 minute read

New York Law Journal

Online Car Auctioneer Says It Has Been Boxed Out of Using Key Inventory Tool

By Brian Lee | August 29, 2022

At the center of the lawsuit, filed in Buffalo, New York, federal court is software used for remarketing millions of off-lease vehicles every year.

4 minute read

Law.com

Compliance Hot Spots: Kanter Keeps Distance from Defense Bar + SEC Departures Gather Momentum + Who's Representing Twitter Whistleblower?

By Andrew Goudsward | August 24, 2022

"It can't be the case that the only people who are qualified to work in the antitrust institutions are law firm partners," Assistant Attorney Jonathan Kanter said earlier this year.

10 minute read

National Law Journal

DOJ Antitrust Chief, a Veteran of Big Law, Keeps Distance From Defense Bar

By Andrew Goudsward | August 22, 2022

"It can't be the case that the only people who are qualified to work in the antitrust institutions are law firm partners," Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter said earlier this year.

9 minute read

Daily Report Online

Manufacturer Files Preemptive Litigation Claiming It Hasn't Engaged in Anticompetitive Conduct

By ALM Staff | August 20, 2022

This lawsuit was surfaced on Law.com Radar. Read the complaint here.

1 minute read