Jennifer Boudet

More than 20 years after the adoption of the first European Commission Leniency Notice, the detection and sanctioning of cartels remains a key feature of the enforcement agenda of the European Commission (the “Commission”) and – the currently still 28 – European Union (“EU”) national competition authorities (“NCAs” or “CAs”). Leniency programmes are a crucial tool in uncovering cartels, with a large majority of cartel decisions adopted by European competition authorities based on immunity and leniency applications. But for how long?

On 6 December 2017, the Court of Justice of European Union (CJEU) issued its long-awaited Judgment in Coty Germany GmbH v Parfümerie Akzente GmbH. Taking an approach similar to that adopted by Advocate General (AG) Wahl in his Opinion in July, the CJEU found that a supplier of luxury goods may (...)

Earlier today, the European Commission (the “EC”) announced the launch of a sector inquiry into the e-commerce sector in the European Union (“EU”). This is the first sector inquiry in the EU since 2008, and is part of the EC’s broader Digital Single Market (“DSM”) Strategy. The Directorate General (...)