Antitrust and Competition

Overview

Onze praktijk Europees mededingingsrecht (antitrust) bestrijkt het volledige spectrum van Europese mededingingsrechtelijke aangelegenheden, waaronder fusies, kartelonderzoeken, schadevergoedingsprocedures, mededingingsrechtelijke aspecten van intellectuele eigendom, counseling en naleving/compliance. Wij leggen ons in het bijzonder ook toe op contentieuze procedures, met inbegrip van herstelvorderingen.

Naast onze capaciteiten op EU-niveau, hebben we ook ervaring in de Belgische en Britse mededingingswetgeving en kunnen we rekenen op een wereldwijd netwerk van advocaten in heel Europa wanneer zich problemen voordoen met betrekking tot andere nationale rechtsgebieden. We hebben ervaring zowel als adviseurs en als toezichthouders en we hebben de steun van meer dan 70 antitrustadvocaten in onze Amerikaanse kantoren, wat onze concurrentiepraktijk een echt internationaal bereik geeft.

“Commentators hail the team's ‘good availability, great expertise and supportiveness.’” Chambers Europe, 2019

“[A] ‘very capable team with an emphasis on commercially-oriented advice, client care, and regular communication.’” Chambers Europe, 2017

“A particular area of strength is in matters involving an interplay of competition law and intellectual property.” Legal 500 EMEA, 2017

We hebben uitstekende werkrelaties met de Europese Commissie en met de nationale mededingingsautoriteiten (met name in België en het Verenigd Koninkrijk). Onze jarenlange ervaring in het voeren van geschillen inzake mededingingsrecht maakt van ons geduchte tegenstanders in procedures voor de nationale rechtbanken (bijvoorbeeld voor de gespecialiseerde mededingingskamer van het Brusselse hof van beroep en voor burgerlijke rechtbanken in heel België), en we hebben ook een uitstekende staat van dienst voor het Hof van Justitie van de Europese Unie.

Onze mededingingsadvocaten dragen regelmatig bij aan handboeken, juridische tijdschriften en blogs. We worden vaak gevraagd om te spreken op conferenties en seminaries in heel Europa, en onze kennis van het mededingingsrecht is alom geprezen (bijv. door Legal 500 EMEA, Chambers Europe en andere toonaangevende juridische gidsen).

“Crowell & Moring is commended for its ‘strong business knowledge’ and for ‘proactively keeping clients apprised of developments in EU law.’” Legal 500 EMEA, 2018

Onze Diensten en Ervaring

Concentratiecontrole

Onze Europese mededingingspraktijk heeft aanmeldingen van concentraties gecoördineerd in meer dan 40 rechtsgebieden over de hele wereld. Onze ervaring inzake concentratiecontrole stelt ons in het bijzonder in staat om:

de noodzaak en wenselijkheid van een aanmelding te beoordelen
de waarschijnlijke complexiteit en duur van de procedure te beoordelen
snel en met minimale onderbreking een goedkeuring van de fusie te verkrijgen
het hele meldingsproces te beheren.

We begeleiden regelmatig grootschalige acquisities en joint ventures, en voeren ook regelmatig multijurisdictionele indieningsanalyses uit in gevallen die de EU-drempels niet halen.

Advies en contentieuze procedures

We adviseren over een groot aantal mededingingsrechtelijke aangelegenheden, zowel op EU- als op nationaal niveau:

Joint ventures en andere samenwerkingsverbanden met concurrenten.
Kwesties in verband met dominante posities.
IP en licentieverlening.

Onze ervaring inzake gerechtelijke procedures vormt de kern van onze concurrentiepraktijk. De vraagstukken die wij behandelen lopen uiteen van patentregelingen en staatssteun tot vragen over distributiesystemen en vragen over prijszetting door dominante ondernemingen. Crowell & Moring-advocaten zijn in meer dan 50 zaken bij het Hof van Justitie van de Europese Unie betrokken geweest.

Antitrust Compliance en Audit

We bieden compliance-ondersteuning, training en audits aan KMOs, multinationals en handelsverenigingen. Onze compliance training is op maat gemaakt voor elke individuele cliënt en we zorgen ervoor dat deze interactief is en gebaseerd is op echte voorbeelden. We bieden ook richtlijnen voor huiszoekingen en nuttig nalevingsmateriaal voor veel voorkomende problemen, zoals prijssignalering en andere vormen van informatie-uitwisseling.

Compliance training.
Compliance programma's.
Dawn raid-ondersteuning.
Antitrust audits.

We bieden de meeste van onze compliance-producten aan op basis van een vaste-prijsovereenkomst. Dit zorgt voor een aantrekkelijke voorspelbaarheid voor onze cliënten.

Herstel van kartelschade

In de VS is het al een gangbare praktijk om een juridische procedure in te stellen tegen leveranciers (en anderen) die een gevormd hebben, om de daardoor veroorzaakte schade op de karteldeelnemers te verhalen. In Europa is dit een snelgroeiend gebied en dankzij de kennis en ervaring van onze Crowell & Moring-collega's in de VS kunnen we koplopers zijn op dit gebied, door miljoenen euro’s terug te vorderen voor onze Europese klanten en bij te dragen tot de ontwikkeling van het recht in dit relatief nieuwe domein.

“Instead of paying lawyers, we like it when our lawyers bring us checks. The Crowell lawyers brought us the recovery opportunity and then recovered millions of dollars for us. They know how to do this right.” Jim Ellis, former Executive Vice President & General Counsel, AT&T

We proberen onze cliënten diensten aan te bieden met beperkte voorafgaande kosten, en bijkomende betaling wanneer en als we een resultaat hebben behaald. Klantenservice staat centraal: wij streven ernaar om aan de behoeften van onze cliënten te voldoen in plaats van alleen onze vergoedingen te maximaliseren, en een vertrouwensrelatie op lange termijn tot stand te brengen die niet beperkt is tot schadevorderingen.

Voorbereiding en strategische analyse.
Waar mogelijk onderhandeling en buitengerechtelijke schikking.
Procesvoering waar nodig.

Als een geval van kartelrecuperatie niet kan worden opgelost door een onderhandelde oplossing en schikking, procederen wij. Zo hebben procedures ter vergoeding van kartelschade die wij gevoerd hebben in het Verenigd Koninkijk al nieuwe precedenten gevestigd. We hebben ook cliënten vertegenwoordigd in private handhavingszaken in België en in arbitrageprocedures bij de Internationale Kamer van Koophandel.

Onze Industrie / Sectorfocus

We hebben aanzienlijke ervaring in de telecommunicatiesector, en in andere gereguleerde sectoren. Wij staan ook cliënten bij in de volgende sectoren: lucht- en ruimtevaart; automobiel; chemicaliën; baggerwerken; energie; fast moving consumer goods; financiële diensten; voedsel en voeder; informatietechnologie; biowetenschappen, medische hulpmiddelen en biotechnologie; media en entertainment; papier; staal; telecommunicatie; en tabak.

Comprehensive, integrated services

A destination practice with over 80 dedicated antitrust practitioners, we have the skill and scale to handle matters of any size, anywhere. We assist clients with the full complement of antitrust and competition issues a business can face, including:

Mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures
Civil litigation and government investigations
Criminal grand jury investigations and trials
Pursuit of damages in recovery actions
Counseling, audits and compliance training

Impossible deals, demanding cases, high-stakes investigations

The biggest names in global business choose our antitrust and competition practice for difficult, high-risk disputes, transactions, and investigations. Our deep bench of trial lawyers can try cases to verdict or arbitrate throughout the world, our transactional team has handled some of the largest and most complex mergers and acquisitions in recent history, and our global team of antitrust practitioners are trusted partners when businesses are the target of government investigations. Recent matters include:

Won global, multijurisdictional clearance for United Technologies Corporation’s $135 billion merger with The Raytheon Company, the largest aerospace transaction in history and The Deal’s 2020 “Deal of the Year”
Successfully represented AT&T in its landmark $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner, at the time the largest telecommunications transaction in history, serving as antitrust counsel throughout the merger investigation and as key members of the trial team, which represented the first litigated challenge to a vertical merger in the U.S. in over 40 years
Defended Marriott International Inc. at trial in an antitrust lawsuit against Marriott and other major hotel companies alleging the companies entered into an agreement not to bid on each other’s branded keywords in paid search advertising
Persuaded the DOJ to close its investigation into whether our clients conspired with their competitors to fix prices without bringing any criminal charges against them and represented both companies in private class actions filed by direct and indirect purchasers
Successfully represented 45 of the largest merchants in the nation in opt-out antitrust litigation against Visa and Mastercard, settling the matter on favorable terms for our clients

Global reach

Our clients’ global business interests frequently demand multi-jurisdictional antitrust and competition strategies, and we regularly assist them on six continents. By maintaining close relationships with the top antitrust firms and practitioners around the world, we can select and coordinate the best possible counsel to help solve clients’ unique cross-jurisdictional problems as they arise. In recent years we’ve assisted clients in mergers, acquisitions, investigations, litigation and arbitration in over 80 jurisdictions.

Government insight

When you need to know which way the regulatory winds are blowing, or get someone on the phone about a case or deal, there is no substitute for inside experience and relationships. Our team members have held key positions at the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission and bring up-to-the minute knowledge of regulatory approaches and priorities.

Client partnerships

We regularly counsel high-profile clients on the full complement of antitrust issues, serving as a trusted adviser with a deep understanding of their business drivers and the industries in which they compete. Many of our relationships have lasted for decades, solving new problems as business models and markets evolve and grow. Our clients include Fortune 500 companies, as well as industry disrupters in a wide range of industries from food to technology.

We promise top value to our clients, and we deliver — through secondments, pricing and payment options, staffing efficiencies, project management and other creative means, and through just, plain winning. If clients are facing financial headwinds, they know we will work with them — because to us, long-term relationships are more important than short-term gains.

Collaborative across the board

Our team earns high marks for working in close partnership with clients, with colleagues across the firm’s practice areas, and with co-counsel on deals and disputes. Our collaborative approach ensures that all parties perform efficiently, smoothly and in the client’s best interest.

Comprehensive, integrated services

A destination practice with over 80 dedicated antitrust practitioners, we have the skill and scale to handle matters of any size, anywhere. We assist clients with the full complement of antitrust and competition issues a business can face, including:

Mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures
Civil litigation and government investigations
Criminal grand jury investigations and trials
Pursuit of damages in recovery actions
Counseling, audits and compliance training

Impossible deals, demanding cases, high-stakes investigations

The biggest names in global business choose our antitrust and competition practice for difficult, high-risk disputes, transactions, and investigations. Our deep bench of trial lawyers can try cases to verdict or arbitrate throughout the world, our transactional team has handled some of the largest and most complex mergers and acquisitions in recent history, and our global team of antitrust practitioners are trusted partners when businesses are the target of government investigations. Recent matters include:

Won global, multijurisdictional clearance for United Technologies Corporation’s $135 billion merger with The Raytheon Company, the largest aerospace transaction in history and The Deal’s 2020 “Deal of the Year”
Successfully represented AT&T in its landmark $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner, at the time the largest telecommunications transaction in history, serving as antitrust counsel throughout the merger investigation and as key members of the trial team, which represented the first litigated challenge to a vertical merger in the U.S. in over 40 years
Defended Marriott International Inc. at trial in an antitrust lawsuit against Marriott and other major hotel companies alleging the companies entered into an agreement not to bid on each other’s branded keywords in paid search advertising
Persuaded the DOJ to close its investigation into whether our clients conspired with their competitors to fix prices without bringing any criminal charges against them and represented both companies in private class actions filed by direct and indirect purchasers
Successfully represented 45 of the largest merchants in the nation in opt-out antitrust litigation against Visa and Mastercard, settling the matter on favorable terms for our clients

Global reach

Our clients’ global business interests frequently demand multi-jurisdictional antitrust and competition strategies, and we regularly assist them on six continents. By maintaining close relationships with the top antitrust firms and practitioners around the world, we can select and coordinate the best possible counsel to help solve clients’ unique cross-jurisdictional problems as they arise. In recent years we’ve assisted clients in mergers, acquisitions, investigations, litigation and arbitration in over 80 jurisdictions.

Government insight

When you need to know which way the regulatory winds are blowing, or get someone on the phone about a case or deal, there is no substitute for inside experience and relationships. Our team members have held key positions at the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission and bring up-to-the minute knowledge of regulatory approaches and priorities.

Client partnerships

We regularly counsel high-profile clients on the full complement of antitrust issues, serving as a trusted adviser with a deep understanding of their business drivers and the industries in which they compete. Many of our relationships have lasted for decades, solving new problems as business models and markets evolve and grow. Our clients include Fortune 500 companies, as well as industry disrupters in a wide range of industries from food to technology.

We promise top value to our clients, and we deliver — through secondments, pricing and payment options, staffing efficiencies, project management and other creative means, and through just, plain winning. If clients are facing financial headwinds, they know we will work with them — because to us, long-term relationships are more important than short-term gains.

Collaborative across the board

Our team earns high marks for working in close partnership with clients, with colleagues across the firm’s practice areas, and with co-counsel on deals and disputes. Our collaborative approach ensures that all parties perform efficiently, smoothly and in the client’s best interest.