This Glossary matches the list of keywords used by Concurrences search engine. Each keyword is automatically updated by the most recent EU and national case laws from the e-Competitions Bulletin and Concurrences Review. The definitions are excerpt from DG COMP’s Glossary of terms used in EU competition policy (© European Union, 2002) and the OECD’s Glossary of industrial organisation economics and competition law (© OECD, 1993).

Sudden break of established business relationships

See definition in French.

Related EU and national case law

Anne-Cécile Martin Selective distribution: The Paris Court of Appeal rules once again on the lawfulness of the refusal of approval of a car distributor under antitrust law and confirms the "absorption" of qualitative selection criteria by quantitative criteria (Safirauto / Hyundai Motor France)

24 June 2020

The dispute over the legality of refusing to approve distributors within selective distribution networks is not drying up, as shown by an interesting decision handed down on 24 June 2020 by the Paris Court of Appeal. The facts of this case are classic. The promoter of a selective distribution (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden termination: The Paris Court of Appeal indirectly admits the impact of the retraining of the victim of a brutal termination in the evaluation of their prejudice (Claas France / Établissements H. B. et fils)

17 June 2020

The facts. Claas, an importer of equipment, particularly agricultural equipment, has been in contact since 2004 with a seller-repairer of the same type of equipment. Since that relationship was formed after the importer took over the management lease of the business of Renault Agriculture, (...)

Frédéric Buy Sudden termination: The International Commercial Chamber of the Paris Court of Appeal rules that Article L. 442-6, I, 5° of the Commercial Code does not override mandatory provisions (Sodmilab / Waters)

3 June 2020

Conflict of doctrines at the Paris Court of Appeal! Chambers 5-4 and 5-5 have so far disagreed as to whether or not the provisions of the former Article L. 442-6, I, 5° C. com. which became L. 442-1, II, constituted a police law: yes for the former (CA Paris, p5 Jul. 2017, RG no. 15/19988; 9 (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden termination: sets the compensation for the sudden termination of an established relationship on the basis of variable and atypical revenues (Inter Mutuelles Habitat / Terroise IDF)

28 May 2020

Facts. The defendant is an EIG whose object is to facilitate the activity of its members, mutual insurance companies, in the management of insurance claims for assistance and repairs in kind relating to housing. For this purpose, it regularly calls upon the services of numerous construction (...)

Alain Ronzano Distribution agreement: The French Competition Authority rejects a referral concerning the breach of the agreements linking two television channels to a content distribution platform (Molotov / TF1, M6)

30 April 2020

By Decision No. 20-D-08, April 30, 2020The Competition Authority rejected Molotov’s application on the merits for lack of sufficient evidence and, consequently, the request for protective measures ancillary to that application. Molotov, a platform for the distribution of television channels and (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden termination: The French Supreme Civil Court reaffirms that a third party may invoke a sudden break of relationships on the basis of Article 1240 Civil code (Back-Holding, Ibis Backwarenvertriebs / Atlantique productions, Biscuiterie pâtisserie carrée, Régals de Bretagne)

18 March 2020

The facts. Two German companies and a French company have been working together for more than twelve years to distribute in Germany industrial bakery products manufactured by two sister companies of the French company. At the end of the last contract and in the absence of agreements between the (...)

Frédéric Buy Sudden termination: The French Supreme Court decides that, in the event of a sudden breach of established commercial relationship, a third party cannot seek compensation for any damage on the basis of article L. 442-6 of the French Commercial Code (Back-holding, Ibis Backwarenvertriebs / Atlantique productions, Biscuiterie pâtisserie carrée and Régals de Bretagne)

18 March 2020

"Only the party who directly maintains an established commercial relationship with the other party may, on the basis of this text, seek the latter’s liability in the event that he has, brutally and without written notice, broken this relationship, even partially third parties may claim (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden termination: The Paris Court of Appeal suggests that an artificial call for tenders should rule out the brutality of the breach (Totem Menuiserie / Brico Dépôt)

11 March 2020

Facts. In March 2015, Brico Dépôt informs the manufacturer who has been supplying it with exotic wood windows and window doors since the end of 2014, of the implementation of a call for tenders and of the termination on the same date, i.e. the end of December 2015, of the supply contract that (...)

Valérie Durand Non-competition clause: The French Supreme Court specifies the condition of geographic scope required for the validity of a non-competition clause (Nutrisens, Bocage, Nutrisens médical / Clarelia)

4 March 2020

Although their validity and usefulness are recognised, non-competition clauses are still met with reluctance today because of their potential for substantial infringements of fundamental freedoms such as the freedom of enterprise. For this reason, the effectiveness of non-competition clauses (...)

Frédéric Buy Sudden termination: The Paris Court of Appeal decides that a third party can sue the company liable for a sudden breach of established commercial relationship when it has suffered a loss (Plaisir Selection Japan / Organisation Intra groupe des achats)

27 February 2020

Here is a timely ruling (Paris, 5-5, Feb. 27, 2020, AJ Contrat 2020, forthcoming, obs. F. Buy). A few months ago, the Plenary Assembly of the Court of Cassation decided to uphold its Boot shop jurisprudence (Cass. ass. plén., Oct. 6, 2006, no. 05-13255), solemnly reaffirming that "a third party (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden termination: The French Civil Supreme Court decide on circumstances affecting the sudden break of established business relationships (Sum / Essilor)

29 January 2020

Fault and tolerance According to the facts of Decision No. 18-20781, a customer, whose business is the installation and maintenance of air systems in aircraft, breached the contract between it and its supplier of precision mechanical parts due to breaches of performance commitments in the (...)

Jean-Louis Fourgoux Sudden termination: The French Supreme Court considers that the judges cannot substitute the basis for wrongful breach of contract with the basis for sudden termination of established commercial relationship, which is the jurisdiction of specialized courts (Rector Lesage / De Rijke Alsace)

29 January 2020

A non-specialized court shall hear a claim for damages arising from the termination of a transport contract for a fixed period of two years, renewable by tacit agreement, before the end of the contract with immediate effect. The Court of Appeal had held that the commercial relationship had (...)

Jean-Louis Fourgoux Sudden termination: The French Supreme Court considers that the recruitment by a client of an employee of its service provider does not dispense with giving notice proportionate to the duration of the business relationship (Sum / Essilor)

29 January 2020

This judgment confirms the Court of Cassation’s practical approach to the conditions under which a party may be exempted from giving notice proportionate to the duration of the commercial relations. In the present case, the company The machining and metallization department (Sum) had been doing (...)

Jean-Michel Vertut Distribution agreement: The Paris commercial court orders as an interim measure the pursuit of deliveries under daily penalty to a supplier in dominant position, who had announced to a client the stop the commercial relationship with a very short deadline, after a disagreement on business conditions, in particular prices, for the upcoming year (ITM Alimentaire International / Coca Cola)

16 January 2020

The case, emblematic of the tensions between suppliers and distributors during the annual negotiations, had been revealed last January in particular by the specialised press (LSA n° 2586, 16 January 2020, n° 2586, p. 14). Following a disagreement during year-end negotiations on the pricing and (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden break: The French Supreme Civil Court holds a decision in the case of a breach excluding the special liability for sudden break of established business relationships (Système U, Knauf...)

15 January 2020

We are aware of the very strict case law in the assessment of the fault likely to justify a breach without the notice required by the former article L. 442-6, I, 5°, which became article L. 442-1, II, C. com. It has sometimes explained this, emphasising that if the text does not specify ’neither (...)

Jean-Louis Fourgoux Significant imbalance: The French Supreme Court decides that pursuant to Article L 442-6 I 2° of the French Commercial Code, a commercial partner is a party with whom the other party commits, or is about to commit, to a commercial relationship without any other condition, either in terms of duration or stability of the commercial relationship (Cometik-Locam)

15 January 2020

The significant imbalance in its initial wording and in the wording applicable since the Order of 24 April 2019 presupposes a precondition: the submission of one partner by the other contracting party to this imbalance. Indeed, while the Order has removed the reference to the "trading partner", (...)

Valérie Durand Sudden termination: The French Supreme Court recalls that an established commercial relationship may be terminated without notice in the event of a sufficiently serious breach (Système U / M. B.)

15 January 2020

Although Title IV of Book IV and, with it, Article L. 442-6 C. com. have been reformed (see L. No. 2018-938, 30 October 2018 for the balance of trade relations in the agricultural and food sector and healthy, sustainable and accessible food for all, art. 17 empowering the Government to reform (...)

Jean-Louis Fourgoux Sudden termination: The Paris Court of Appeal considers that if the economic crisis can constitute a case of force majeure, it must still be proven to dispense a written notice (Carrefour France / Ministre Économie and Coopérative Légumière Crimart)

8 January 2020

The Paris Court of Appeal upheld the conviction of Carrefour, which had severed commercial relations with one of its suppliers without warning. A cooperative had been supplying ED and then Dia within the Carrefour group since 1996 after various legal restructurings. In 2014, the cooperative was (...)

Marie Cartapanis Fines: The French Competition Authority imposes a EUR 150 Million fine to an undertaking for an abuse of dominant position on the online search advertising market (Google)

19 December 2019

On 19 December 2019, the Competition Authority imposed a fine of €150 million on Google for abusing its dominant position in the market for search-related online advertising. This decision is part of a general climate of mistrust towards the digital giant. In addition to the sanctions imposed (...)

Jean-Louis Fourgoux Sudden break: The French Supreme Court decides that the actualisation of the damage caused by the termination of commercial relations can only be the legal interest rate and not the rate applicable in the event of late payment of invoices provided for by the former Article L. 441-6 of the Commercial Code (Externis / Dinadis)

18 December 2019

In a judgment on the abrupt termination of commercial relations between a logistics service provider (Dinadis) and its principal (Externis), the Paris Court of Appeal upheld the application for judgment on the ground that the notice period was insufficient and awarded Dinadis compensation with (...)

Jean-Michel Vertut Selective distribution: The French Supreme Civil Court considers that a candidature for accreditation of a secondary point of sales must respect terms and conditions agreed for the control by the supplier of required standards in the point of sales of its network, and that one-off delivery delays could be no considered as contractual fault (Établissements Christian F. / Hyundai Motor France)

11 December 2019

In our letter of April 2018, we commented on a ruling handed down in a case opposing the supplier Huyndai to one of its former distributors (Paris, February 7, 2018, No. 15/08853). In this case, a Hyundai distributor operated two sales outlets in Pau and Tarbes respectively. Each outlet gave (...)

Jean-Louis Fourgoux Sudden break: The French Supreme Court approves the judges declaring inadmissible an action for compensation for the termination of a commercial relationship brought by several plaintiffs and based indiscriminately on contractual and tortious liability (Expertises-Rarecars / Artcurial)

4 December 2019

An expert in car valuations worked with the auction company Artcurial. After founding a Rarecars company, he continued the relationship with this auctioneer’s company through him. After seven years of collaboration, Artcurial decided to terminate the contract. The expert first tries to have the (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden break: The French Supreme Civil Court pronounces inadmissibility of legal claims based on the principle of non-cumulation between the different types of liability (Artcurial)

4 December 2019

Background. The practical implications of the lack of autonomy of the extra-contractual concept of the "established relationship" and of the contracts on which it is based are as numerous as they are daunting. Because contracts and the relationship are necessarily intermingled, many litigants (...)

Aymeric Louvet Mandate management: The commercial division of the Court of Cassation confirms that the former article L 442-6-I 5e of the French commercial code applies to the management mandate, and invalidates, based on an assessment in concreto, the post-term non-compete clause (ACS Thiers diffusion / GIFI Mag)

20 November 2019

In line with a decision recently published in the Bulletin (Com., 2 Oct. 2019, Lettre distr. octobre 2019, obs. C. Mouly), the decision under comment applies to a contract for the management and agent (Com., art. L 146-1) of the GIFI network the legal provisions relating to the abrupt (...)

Nicolas Éréséo Exclusive distribution: The Paris Court of Appeal rules that the provisions of the Commercial Code relating to price transparency and unfair commercial practices apply to the automotive distribution sector (Mazda / Montchapet Automobiles)

6 November 2019

The judgment under comment deserves particular attention in that it illustrates a worrying phenomenon: the increasing pollution of the entire distribution law by provisions which were originally intended for the large-scale distribution sector alone. In the present case, two companies (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden break: The Court of cassation agrees with a raise of article L. 442-6, I, 5° C. com. (Aliantis / Automobile Carrosserie de Bagneux)

6 November 2019

An apparent duplicate. Because the provisions of article L. 442-1, II (formerly article L. 442-6, I, 5°) of the Commercial Code sanction by extra-contractual liability the breach without sufficient foresight of a commercial relationship which itself is based on a contract whose content, if not (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden break: The French Supreme Civil Court and the Paris Court of Appeal disagree with the special character of tenure termination rules against article L. 442-6, I, 5 of the Fr. Com. code (IDF Management / Gifi...)

3 October 2019

Typology of exclusions from the scope of Article L. 442-6, I, 5°. The scope of application of the former Article L. 442-6, I, 5° C. com. and the new Article L. 442-1, II, is constantly being questioned. By induction, we thought to identify three types of exclusions. The first concern areas that (...)

Aymeric Louvet Commercial agency: The Paris Court of Appeal – to which the case is referred by the Court of Cassation – retains the seriousness of the misconducts discovered after the termination of the commercial agency contract as such misconducts took place prior to the termination (Dipa / Cémoi)

3 October 2019

Serious misconduct on the part of a commercial agent who is deprived of the indemnity cannot be ruled out on the ground that it was discovered by the principal after the termination. This solution recently reached by the Court of Cassation (Com., 14 Feb. 2018, No. 16-26037), overturning a (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden break: The French Civil Supreme Court confirms the precarious nature of business relationships despite substantial deel flow (IDF Management / Gifi...)

2 October 2019

Case law consistently identifies the relationship established, within the meaning of article L. 441-2, II (formerly L. 442-6, I, 5°) C. com. by the existence of a flow of business. More precisely, it "means commercial exchanges concluded directly between the parties, of a continuous, stable and (...)

Frédéric Buy Sudden break: The French Supreme Court decides, for the first time, that Article L. 442-6, I, 5° of the French Commercial Code does not apply between an agent and a principal (IDF Management / Gifi)

2 October 2019

On 2 October 2019, the Court of Cassation handed down an important and noteworthy ruling (D. actu 17 October 2019, obs. X. Delpech; CCC 2019, No. 198, obs. N. Mathey; AJ Contrat 2019, p. 483, note N. Dissaux; adde F. Buy, De quelques conflits de lois internes en droit des affaires, D. 2019, p. (...)

Frédéric Buy Sudden break: The French Supreme Court prohibits lower judges, in accordance with the principle that the judge has an obligation not to distort the writing submitted to him, from deciding on the basis of a sudden breach of commercial relationships whereas the purpose of the request was based on contractual liability (IGA)

18 September 2019

The law of unfair commercial practices is now leading practitioners and academics to "revisit the relationship between ordinary law and special law" (J. Klein, Les rapports entre le C. com. et le C. civ, Concurrences No. 3-2019, art. 90980.). Especially in the case of abrupt break-ups, the (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden break: The French Supreme Civil Court restraints the Paris Court of Appeal’s jurisdiction regarding sudden break of established business relationships appeals (Ciprés assurances / IGA éditions...)

18 September 2019

Article D. 442-3 of the French Commercial Code, to which former Article L. 442-6, III, now L. 442-4, III, referred, lists the courts entitled to hear disputes relating to restrictive practices. It is well known that this specialisation specifically misleads the litigant invoking an abrupt (...)

Jean-Michel Vertut Sudden break: The Paris Court of appeal rules in a sudden break of established business relationships, on a settlement of accounts between a supplier and one of its ex distributor, and studies the combination of new rules from the French Commercial code (JD Services / Brico Dépot)

31 July 2019

The Order of 24 April 2019 reforming Title IV reflects a desire on the part of the public authorities to approach the various restrictive practices according to an approach which, although minimalist in terms of the wording of what is prohibited, is nonetheless firm. Not without a somewhat (...)

Mary-Claude Mitchell Sudden break: The Paris Court of Appeal rules that a unilateral modification of tariff conditions without any notice period and the cancellation of an exclusivity clause constitute a sudden breach of established commercial relationships (Hammel / Medimat)

11 July 2019

The contours of the notion of abrupt termination of established commercial relations have been established over time by case law. It is known that, in accordance with article L. 442-6-I-5° C. com. (now L. 442-1-II), a person who breaks, even partially, an established commercial relationship (...)

Émilie Prouzet, Laurence Idot Conciliation with EU law (The reform of the French Commercial Code’s Title IV Book IV - Nanterre, April 4th, 2019)

September 2019

The Unfair Commercial Practices in the Food Supply Chain Directive Emilie Prouzet European Public Affairs Director, Federation of Commerce and Distribution, Brussels 1. In thirty years, European agriculture has experienced numerous crises, the intensity of which has particularly increased in (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Sudden break: The French Civil Supreme Court accepts a predictable break as a non sudden break of established business relationships but still ignores victim’s reorientig to assess injury (Borie Manoux / Chateau Baret ; SNMR / Baglione)

3 July 2019

Decisions handed down in matters of abrupt termination of a commercial relationship established pursuant to the former Article L. 442-6, I, 5° C. com. (now Article L. 441-2, II) are not always reconciled with each other. Each of the principles set out is decided the other way round, as is shown (...)

Jean-Louis Fourgoux Sudden break: The French Supreme Court rules that in the event of a persistent disagreement on the purchase price of a wine vintage, the termination may not be attributed to either party (Château Baret)

3 July 2019

The species was quite original and deserves a little explanation. A castle in the Bordeaux region (Chateau Baret) had been in a commercial relationship with a merchant for about thirty years without any reason to change it. The 2009 vintage will be a casus belli between the parties. The (...)

Valérie Durand Sudden break: The French Supreme Court rules that the announcement of a business transfer has no effect on the established character of the commercial relationship (Garage Sylvestre / Automobile Citroën)

3 July 2019

The termination of established commercial relations remains a particularly lively basis for litigation, as evidenced by the ruling handed down by the Commercial Chamber of the Court of Cassation on July 3, 2019. This ruling also provides an opportunity for the Court of Cassation to clarify the (...)

Vincent Malassigné, Olivier Deshayes, Marine Michineau Unfair practices (The reform of the French Commercial Code’s Title IV Book IV - Nanterre, April 4th, 2019)

September 2019

Price control Vincent Malassigné Professor, University of Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (University Paris-Saclay) Price control in so-called ’commercial’ relations has been strengthened over the last two years and, in particular, following Ordinance No. 2019-359 of 24 April 2019 amending (...)

Martine Behar-Touchais, Julie Klein Reorganisation of the Title IV (The reform of the French Commercial Code’s Title IV Book IV - Nanterre, April 4th, 2019)

September 2019

The significant imbalance, a central figure of unfair commercial practices in the order of 24 April 2019? Martine Behar-Touchais Professor, School of Law, University of Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne Institut de recherche juridique de la Sorbonne (IRJS-André Tunc) Former member, Collège du Conseil (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Selective distribution: The Paris Court of Appeal and the French Supreme Civil Court specify fault features enabling to terminate business relationships without notice (Slad / Prodirest)

19 June 2019

The new Article L. 441-2, II, of the French Commercial Code repeats the precision of the former Article L. 442-6, I, 5° exempting the author of a resolution for failure to comply with the prior notice requirement. Nevertheless, if the "paragraph does not specify the nature or degree of (...)

Nicolas Ferrier Selective distribution: The Paris Court of Appeal considers, by a concrete examination, that running a brick-and-mortar store is a lawful criterion to be imposed to candidates to a selective distribution network (Concurrence / Samsung Electronics France)

5 June 2019

The Internet is testing selective distribution networks (see not. L. Vogel, Réseaux contre plates-formes : la distribution sélective à l’épreuve de l’internet, in Études en l’honneur du professeur Jérôme Huet, LGDJ 2017, p. 401), and regularly raises questions about the balance to be struck between, on (...)

Jean-Louis Fourgoux Sudden termination: The French Supreme Court refuses to consider that the contractual failure to submit accounts in the performance of an affiliation contract constitutes a circumstance allowing the contract to be terminated without notice (Transgourmet / Slad)

5 June 2019

The transparency of negotiations in distribution networks is a source of major disputes sometimes linked to the notion of mandate between the network head and the members. The Court of Cassation in a dispute between a Bricorama franchisor and its franchisee approved the Paris Court of Appeals (...)

Nathalie Lefeuvre-Roumanos Agency agreement: The Toulouse and Douai Courts of appeal provide details regarding the method for calculating the termination compensation (Dike Deco; Fine Brands / Victorinox Swiss Army Fragrance)

29 May 2019

1st species In 2010, the company DIKE DECO gave a mandate to an individual agent to represent it, without exclusivity, in a number of French departments, with a view to promoting the sale of decorative articles. In July 2013, the principal informed its agent that it was taking over the (...)

Karine Biancone Selective distribution:The Paris Court of Appeal rules on a case of termination of a distribution contract because of the failure to complete the non-resale provision to an out-network reseller (NDP / Automobiles Peugeot)

16 May 2019

Open-ended dealership agreements will be signed in 2011 between N (dealer) and Automobiles Peugeot (grantor) for the distribution and after-sales service of Peugeot vehicles from the Paris (17th), Asnières, Chambly and Saint-Brie sites. They provided for incentive bonuses (relating to the rate (...)

Valérie Durand Sudden termination: The French Supreme Court applies Article L. 442-6, I, 5° of the French Commercial Code to a sudden termination of an international commercial relationships (Acciaierie Bertoli Safau Sisak / Phocéenne)

7 May 2019

Where, unlike its partner, a party to the commercial relationship has its seat and activity in France, it seems logical that it should seek the protection offered by French law. This is the case where the breach of which it is a victim falls, or appears to fall, under the provisions of the (...)

Jean-Louis Fourgoux Sudden termination: The French Supreme Court decides that the commercial relationship must be understood as the contractual links existing between the companies, without taking into account the notion of parent and subsidiary companies (Rotosiam Batfim / Carrefour)

7 May 2019

This case is quite revealing of the difficulty of including in the termination of commercial relations the notion of industrial relations within a group. In the first years of application of the text, the case law was fairly flexible with the victims and accepted that they could include in the (...)

Jean-Louis Fourgoux Sudden termination: The French Supreme Court decides that the continuation of discussions and negotiations for the renewal of an agent’s contract does not prevent the notification of the termination (Garage Jean Charles Nacci / Auto diffusion Saint Etienne)

7 May 2019

The case involved a former Renault agent and his counsel, who himself had succeeded a Renault subsidiary. Indeed, in 2009 Renault had sold a branch to an independent dealer who had retained the Renault agents, the Renault agent and Dacia in place since 1980 in the contract territory. The new (...)

Clémence Mouly-Guillemaud Franchise: The Paris Court of Appeal and the French Court de cassation define the notion of partners in established business relationships (Rotosiam / Carrefour...)

7 May 2019

The continuation of the relationship in the event of a sale of the fund After having affirmed, without the slightest reservation, that the assignee of a fund which is addressed to an economic partner of the assignor was continuing the relationship of his predecessor (Com., 2 Nov. 2011, No. (...)

Aymeric Louvet Commercial agency: The Poitiers Court of Appeals upholds that termination of a commercial agency contract results from the sole fault of the principal which unilaterally altered the geographical exclusivity, and draws the consequences in terms of commissions and indemnities claimed by the commercial agent (Ter’nat / Altius Development)

30 April 2019

A commercial agent, acting in the interests of a company specialising in the marketing of organic food products, acknowledges the breach of his contract to the detriment of his principal, considering that the geographical exclusivity which he enjoyed had been unilaterally modified. The agent (...)

Glossary

A

Absolute territorial protection • Abuse of dominant position • Abuse of economic dependence • Access to essential facility • Access to information • Access to the file • Agency agreement • Agent • Agreement (notion) • Amicus curiae • Ancillary restraints • Annulment • Anticompetitive objet or effect • Anticompetitive practices • Applicable law • Arbitration

B

Barriers to entry • Bid rigging • Block exemption (Regulation) • Boycott • Brand competition • Burden of proof • Business secrets • Buyer power

C

Cartel • Clearance phase I (merger) • Clearance phase II (merger) • Collecting society • Collective dominance • Collective redress (class action) • Competence • Competition policy • Competition policy • Complaint • Compliance programme • Compulsory license • Concerted practices • Concession • Concurrent jurisdiction • Consumers protection • Consumers’ associations • Control (change) • Control (notion) • Cooperation Agreement • Cooperation between competition authorities • Coordinated effects • Copyright • Corporate group • Corruption • Cost-based access • Criminal sanctions • Cross subsidisation

D

Damages • Dawn raids • De minimis notice • Direct effect • Discriminatory practices • Distribution agreement • Dominance (notion)

E

ECHR • Economic analysis • Economic efficiency • Effect on trade between Member States • Effective judicial protection • Environmental protection • Essential facility • European Competition Network (ECN) • Excess prices • Exchanges of information • Exclusive distribution • Exclusive purchasing agreement • Exclusive right (Art. 106 TFEU) • Exclusivity clause • Exhaustion • Extra-territoriality

F

Failing firm defence • Fine • Fine mitigating • Foreign direct investment (FDI) • Franchising • FRAND

G

Geographic market • Group purchasing organization • Gun jumping

H

Hard core restrictions • Horizontal agreement

I

Individual exemption • Intellectual property right • Interim measures • International competition network (ICN) • Investigations / inquiries • Investigations/ inquiries

J

Joint control • Joint venture • Judicial review

L

Legal privilege • Leniency • Licensing • Limitation period • Low prices

M

Mandatary (distribution) • Margin squeeze • Market economy investor • Market power • Market share • Media pluralism • Merger (notion) • Merger (prohibition) • Merger (withdrawal) • Minority shareholdings

N

Ne bis in idem • Non-competition clause • Notification • Nullity

O

Oligopoly

P

Parallel imports (parallel trade) • Passing-on • Pay-for-delay • Periodic penalty payment • Personal data • Predatory pricing • Preliminary ruling (Art. 267 TFUE) • Price discrimination • Price-fixing agreement • Prices • Principle of effectiveness • Principle of equal treatment • Principle of equivalence • Principle of proportionality • Private enforcement • Privatization • Procedural autonomy • Professional association • Public procurement • Public undertaking

R

Referral (merger) • Refusal to deal • Regulated prices • Relevant market • Remedies (antitrust) • Request for information • Resale price maintenance (RPM) • Resale-below-cost • Right against self-incrimination • Rights of defence • Rule of reason

S

Sector inquiry • Selective distribution • Services of general economic interest • Single branding • Sole control • Spill-over effects • Standard-Essential Patent (SEP) • State action defense • State aid (compatibility) • State aid (existing aid) • State aid (notification) • State aid (notion) • State aid (recovery) • State aid (tax ruling) • State aid (unlawful aid) • State measure • Sudden break of established business relationships

T

Test SIEC (merger) • Test SLC (merger) • Transfer of technology • Transfer pricing • Trustee (mergers) • Turnover threshold (merger) • Tying or tied selling

U

Undertaking (notion) • Unfair competition • Universal service

V

Vertical agreement • Vertical restraints (or restrictions)