Robert Bell is a competition & regulatory specialist in the corporate department of Armstrong Teasdale with over 30 years’ experience advising clients on complex competition and regulatory matters involving some of the leading cases before the Competition & Markets Authority, the European Commission, and the UK Courts. He has advised clients on a range of competition law issues including merger control, cartels, competition investigations and competition litigation, representing them before competition regulators like the CMA, OFCOM, FCA and the EU Commission and national courts.
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Emergency Amendments to UK Competition Law to Help Maintain Supply of Essential Goods & Services in Face of COVID-19 Outbreak* The UK Government passed emergency legislation to amend UK competition law on 27th March 2020 to help healthcare, grocery and ferry companies maintain the (...)
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COMPETITION & MARKETS AUTHORITY GETS TOUGH ON CARTELS* On 22 October 2018, the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced that it had launched a new “Stop Cartels” campaign to educate businesses about anti-competitive practices and encourage people to come forward if they suspect (...)
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UK LANDMARK COMPETITION CASE CONDEMNS ABSOLUTE INTERNET SALE BAN AS A SERIOUS BREACH OF COMPETITION LAW* Introduction The Competition Appeal Tribunal (“CAT”) handed down its judgment on 7 September 2018 in relation to an appeal by Ping Europe Limited (“Ping”) challenging the decision of the UK (...)
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ELECTRO RENT APPEALS FIRST EVER CMA FINE FOR GUN JUMPING.* Introduction and Summary An appeal has been launched against the UK competition regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) first decision fining a party for gun jumping. On 20 July 2018, the Competition Appeal Tribunal (...)
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EU COMMISSION FINES MAJOR CONSUMER ELECTRONICS MANUFACTURERS FOR FIXING ONLINE RESALE PRICES* On 24th July 2018 the EU Commission passed a decision to enforce the competition rules in yet another case involving the e-commerce sector. This time it fined a number of leading consumer electronics (...)
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QUALCOMM RECEIVES SUPPLEMENTARY STATEMENT OF OBJECTIONS FROM THE EU COMMISSION IN PREDATORY PRICING INVESTIGATION* Hot on the heels of the announcement of a record antitrust fine imposed by the European antitrust regulator upon another US technology company , the European Commission announced (...)
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UK COMPETITION & MARKETS AUTHORITY PROVIDES UPDATES ON ITS PHARMACEUTICAL SECTOR INVESTIGATIONS* On 12th July 2018 Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced it was extending its timetable in relation to a number of its ongoing investigations involving anti-competitive practices in (...)
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UK COMPETITION REGULATOR TAKES ENFORCEMENT ACTION AGAINST HOTEL BOOKING WEBSITES* The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) announced on 28th June 2018 that it is taking enforcement action against several hotel booking sites over potential breaches of consumer protection law. The CMA has (...)
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GREATER NATIONAL SECURITY SCRUTINY AT THE HEART OF NEW UK MERGER CONTROL REFORMS* This week the UK Government enacted two new Orders which lower the UK merger control thresholds under the Enterprise Act 2002. The legislation extends the jurisdiction of the Competition and Markets Authority (...)
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EXCESSIVE PRICE? COMPARED TO WHAT?* On 7 June 2017, the Competition Appeal Tribunal (“CAT”) set aside parts of the Competition & Market Authority’s (“CMA”) decision in relation to the CMA’s finding that Pfizer and Flynn charged excessive and unfair prices for phenytoin sodium capsules and (...)
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EUROPEAN COURT OF JUSTICE CLARIFIES SCOPE OF GUN JUMPING PROHIBITION* Over the last year, we have noted an increased crackdown by competition agencies on so-called “gun jumping” – that is, the implementation of a merger before mandatory merger clearances are received. On 31 May 2018, the European (...)
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COMMISSION IMPOSES UPON DUTCH CABLE & TELCO COMPANY ALTICE A RECORD FINE OF €125 MILLION FOR GUN JUMPING UNDER THE EU MERGER REGULATION* On 24th April 2018 the European Commission announced that it had imposed a fine of €124.5 million on Altice, the multinational cable and telecommunications (...)
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