Joint application against a merger decision: The CFI confirms a pragmatic line on the admissibility of joint application against a merger control decision (NVV)

*This article is an automatic translation of the original article, provided here for your convenience. Read the original article. – CFI, 7 May 2009, NVV and Others v Commission, Case T-151/05. This case concerns the merger of two Dutch pigmeat slaughterhouses, a merger cleared by the Commission under the first phase of Regulation 139/2004 (see Merger in this issue of Merger Review). That decision was the subject of a single action brought jointly by a pig farmers' union, an association for the defence of the interests of Dutch livestock traders and a natural person, a pig farmer. Admissibility of the joint appeal Case law recognises quite widely the standing of third parties (e.g. competitors to the merging parties or trade unions) against positive decisions (see, CFI, 4 July 2006,