The Estonian Court of appeal confirms the right of third parties to challenge merger decisions, but upholds the Competition Authority’s merger clearance concerning the acquisition of a company controlling a chain of pharmacies (Magnum Medical / Parimex Invest)

On 14 June 2005, the Tallinn Circuit Court (a court of appeal) issued a judgment upholding the Estonian Competition Authority's (ECA) merger clearance concerning the acquisition of OÜ Parimex Invest, a company controlling a chain of pharmacies, by AS Magnum Medical, an Estonian dominant wholesaler of pharmaceuticals. The judgment focused on three main issues: (i) the right to challenge the ECA's merger decisions by third parties; (ii) the impact of pharmaceuticals regulation on merger control decisions; (iii) the definition of relevant markets. As regards the right to challenge the ECA's merger decisions, the ECA contended that only the parties to the concentration and not any third