Paul Gilbert

On 20 July 2021, the UK Government launched its consultation on wide-ranging reforms to “bring [the UK’s] competition and consumer policies into the 21st century” [1] (the “Consultation”). While recognising that the UK’s competition regime “starts from a strong foundation” and “is (...)

On June 24, 2021, after almost 10 years of proceedings, the FCA held that Kärcher’s recommended resale prices practices did not amount to resale price maintenance. In particular, while Kärcher sales persons regularly visited points of sale to discuss elements of sales policy, such as the (...)

On 16 February 2021, John Penrose MP published an independent report on improving competition and consumer protection in the UK (the Report). It finds that the UK’s competition and consumer regime “has a good reputation, but not a great one”; progress on “cutting the costs of red tape” has (...)

On January 28, 2021, the Rotterdam District Court handed down a judgment in an appeal brought by Royal Dutch Shell (Shell) against an October 2019 magistrate ruling regarding the scope of legal professional privilege (LPP) over legal advice given by Shell’s in- house lawyers . The judgment is (...)

On December 9, 2020, the Court of Justice of the European Union granted Canal+’s application to annul the European Commission’s decision under Article 9 of Regulation No. 1/2003 to adopt commitments offered by Paramount (the “Commitments Decision”). The commitments prohibited Paramount from (...)

On November 11, the UK Government proposed a new national security screening regime that would allow the Government to intervene in “potentially hostile” foreign investments that threatened UK national security while “ensuring the UK remains a global champion of free trade and an attractive (...)

The Court of Appeal has handed down an important judgment clarifying the ability of parties that settle European Commission (Commission) antitrust investigations to challenge the Commission’s findings in follow-on damages actions. The judgment concerns an appeal relating to a preliminary (...)

On 5 September 2020, the UK Government accepted undertakings from Gardner Aerospace Holdings Limited not to proceed with its proposed acquisition of Impcross Limited, a UK-based manufacturer of components for the aerospace industry (including for military aircraft). Gardner is owned by (...)

On 26 August 2020, the UK Supreme Court issued its judgment in a standard-essential patent (SEP) dispute between Huawei and Unwired Planet (see full alert memorandum). Unwired Planet is a patent assertion entity that acquires and licenses patents. In 2013, it acquired telecoms patents from (...)

This article has been nominated for the 2021 Antitrust Writing Awards. Click here to learn more about the Antitrust Writing Awards. On 26 August, 2020, the UK Supreme Court decided a standard-essential patent (SEP) dispute between Huawei and Unwired Planet. [1] The Supreme Court held that (...)

The CMA’s Guidance on applications for leniency and no-action in cartel cases provides detailed guidance on the principles and process for leniency applications. On 30 July 2020, the CMA invited comments on a proposed addendum to clarify the way the CMA will exercise its discretion in relation (...)

On 22 June 2020, the UK Government introduced new measures allowing it to intervene in merger transactions “to maintain in the United Kingdom the capability to combat, and to mitigate the effects of, public health emergencies." The Government will be able to intervene on these grounds in any (...)

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). The case considered appeals relating to three separate damages actions brought by retailers against (...)

The UK Government, the Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) and sectoral regulators are taking measures to respond to COVID-19, including suspending certain elements of competition law to allow competing suppliers of essential products and services to work together, while monitoring (...)

This article has been nominated for the 2020 Antitrust Writing Awards. Click here to learn more about the Antitrust Writing Awards. On 21 February, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (the “FCA”) found that Hargreave Hale Ltd (“Hargreave Hale”), Newton Investment Management Limited (...)

UK Clamps Down On Gun-Jumping On 12 February 2019, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) imposed a fine of £200,000 on Electro Rent for gun-jumping. [1] This is the third occasion on which the CMA has penalised a company for breaching “standstill” or “hold-separate” obligations (...)

In 2015, the EU Interchange Fee Regulation (the “IFR”) introduced price caps on the interchange fees paid between banks for processing credit and debit card payments. These fee caps attempt to address concerns identified in a series of antitrust investigations into Visa and Mastercard through (...)

In September 2016, the Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) launched a Market Study into digital comparison tools (“DCTs”). On March 28, 2017, the CMA published an update on the Market Study setting out its preliminary findings and areas of focus for the second part of the Market Study. (...)

The Damages Directive seeks to promote private enforcement of EU competition law before national courts across the European Union (the “EU”). The UK Regulations implementing the Directive were laid before Parliament on 20 December 2016 but will not come into force until after they have (...)

UK Introduces Reforms to Facilitate Private Actions in Antitrust Cases From October 1, 2015, new rules will make it easier for claimants to pursue antitrust damages claims in the UK. These reforms, introduced under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (the “Act”), are the final piece of the (...)