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Blog o’ Blogs October

By  |  October 26, 2017

Fall is here, and the dropping leaves are sure to blend in with the avalanche of changes (and corresponding paperwork) brought on by an increasingly bubbly Antitrust community. Major decisions regarding global companies are being reached, a deepening rift between European and US authorities starts to throw some interesting debates, and all eyes continue to strain as both Brexit and forceful Asian enforcement demand attention. Certainly looking like a lively last quarter in the world of Competition…

According to the longstanding case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union (the “Court”), rebates which are conditional upon a purchaser buying all or most of its requirements from a dominant supplier (so called “exclusivity” or “loyalty” rebates) have been presumed to be abusive on the basis that they are by their very nature anticompetitive…
Isabel Rahman (Sheppard Mullin)

Antitrust Division to International Community: “Imperative that Competition Agencies Work Together”
For several years, the Antitrust Division’s investigations have been increasingly global in scope.  Acting Assistant Attorney General Andrew Finch made clear that trend will continue in remarks at a conference on International Antitrust Law and Policy held in New York earlier this month…
Amy N. Vegari & Melissa R. Ginsburg (Patterson Belknap Antitrust Update)

Being a policeman is a difficult job at the best of times. Suspects inevitably think that they are innocent and resent the perceived unjustified intrusion on their law-abiding activities.
Mark Wagh (Sidley Austin LLP)
Single Firm Conduct: European Competition Policy, the European Court of Justice, and Brexit
In recent years, the European Union’s (EU) administrative body, the European Commission (EC), increasingly has applied European competition law in a manner that undermines free market dynamics.
Alden Abbott (Truth on the Market)
In a 2-1 decision issued on September 7, 2017, the Eleventh Circuit reversed a district court decision dismissing antirust claims brought by auto body shops against a group of car insurance companies in the In re Auto Body Shop Antitrust Litigation.
Jamison Davis & Melissa R. Ginsburg (Patterson Belknap Antitrust Update)

On 12th September 2017  the UK competition authority, the Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) sent an open letter to businesses in the creative industries sector warning them about price fixing and information sharing, emphasising that this type of illegal behaviour will not be tolerated…
Robert Bell (Bryan Cave

The EU gets tough on gun-jumping
Like many international merger control statutes, the EU Merger Regulation (EUMR) prohibits the closing of a notifiable transaction until the European Commission (the Commission) grants or is deemed to have granted antitrust approval. Until recently, however, the Commission has pursued very few violations of this rule, known as “gun-jumping,” in particular compared to the U.S. antitrust agencies….
 (Norton Rose Fulbright)

On Excessive Pricing and Subjectivity- The CJEU’s Judgment in case C-177/16 AKKA/LAA
Excessive pricing has been one of the topics of the year. It’s also an issue close to our heart, first because Commissioner Vestager’s speech about it includes our names (the text is here and the full video is available here) and, second, because we are victims this practice daily.
Alonso Miranda (Chilling Competition)

Is an Anticompetitive Contract Clause an Ancillary Restraint that will survive Antitrust Scrutiny?
As a regular reader of The Antitrust Attorney Blog, you understand that setting prices or allocating markets with your competitor is a terrible idea. Doing so is likely to lead to civil litigation and perhaps even criminal penalties.…
Jarod Bona (The Antitrust Attorney)
Rewarding Loyalty: ECJ Holds that Loyalty Rebates Do Not Per Se Restrict Competition
In September 2017, the European Court of Justice (Case C-413/14 P) reversed the ruling of the General Court, which had upheld the European Commission’s €1.06 billion fine on Intel for abusing its dominant position on the market…
Laurent de Muyter & Alexandre Vertheyden (Jones Day)
The Allergan-Mohawk deal: An ingenious strategy to avoid an unbalanced IPR process
Last Friday, drug maker Allergan and the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe announced that they had reached an agreement under which Allergan assigned the patents on its top-selling drug Restasis to the tribe and, in return, Allergan was given the exclusive license on the Restasis patents…
Joanna Shepherd (Truth on the Market)
Major Victory for Intel as CJEU Sends Case Back to General Court for Re-examination
On 6 September, the EU’s highest court, the Court of Justice (CJEU), released its long-awaited decision in the Intel case, in which the Commission imposed a fine of €1.06 billion
Ian Giles & Jay Modrall (Antitrust Connect)