The EU Court of Justice AG Bobek proposes to include protected legal interests within the threefold conditions for the ne bis in idem principle thereby allowing the Belgian Competition Authority to pursue a fine against a postal incumbent which had already been fined by its sectoral regulator (bpost / Nordzuck)

On 2 September 2021, Advocate General (AG) Bobek delivered his opinion in case C-117/20, bpost SA v. Autorité belge de la Concurrence, on the conditions of application of the ne bis in idem principle, pursuant to which one cannot be tried or punished for an infringement for which one has already been convicted or acquitted (prohibition of double jeopardy). Factual Background and Procedure The opinion of AG Bobek is the latest step in a long-standing legal battle between Belgian incumbent postal company bpost and the Belgian Competition Authority (Belgische Mededingingsautoriteit / Autorité belge de la Concurrence - the BCA) concerning bpost’s quantitative rebate scheme on so-called “consolidators”, i.e., intermediaries offering postal services such as preparing, processing and