Competition law compliance elearning
Shoosmiths' competition law e-learning course enables businesses efficiently to deliver the key "do's and don'ts" to staff across their organisation.
View ArticleClik here to view.
OFT launches a market study into residential property management services to...
On 4 March 2014 the OFT launched a market study into residential property management services. It intends to look at how this market is working for leaseholders and freeholders in England and Wales....
View ArticleClik here to view.
European Commission fines private equity firm for cartel
On 2 April 2014, the European Commission announced that it was fining the participants in a worldwide undersea cable cartel. The companies in question had colluded to share markets and customers over a...
View ArticleCourt says permitted use restriction breaks competition law
In a judgment that is likely to attract considerable attention, the Central London County Court has ruled that a permitted use restriction in a lease is anti-competitive and unenforceable. Until 2011,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Commission adopts new State aid General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER)
On 21 May 2014, as part of its State aid modernisation programme, the European Commission adopted a revised State aid General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER). The old GBER, which came into force in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The coffee capsule revolution: French competition authority opens up market...
Following an investigation sparked by complaints from rival espresso coffee capsule manufacturers, the French Competition Authority has accepted commitments from Nespresso. These are designed to open...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Public procurement: new regulations on the way
Public procurement rules are changing across Europe, and the UK government has just published a first draft of the new regulations that it proposes will implement the changes. A consultation process is...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA probes estate agents restriction on advertising fees and discounts
The importance of companies being able to freely advertise their fees or discounts has again been highlighted by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). On 10 December 2014 the CMA announced its...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Private equity investors must ensure their investee companies comply with...
On 30 December 2014, the Dutch competition authority announced it had fined three investment companies between 450,000 and 1.5 million (EUR) for their investee businesses' involvement in a cartel in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
FCA gets ready for concurrent competition powers
On 1 April 2015, the FCA acquires competition law enforcement powers in the financial services sector. Although it already has the objective of promoting competition, the FCA's remit is set to be...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Progress in criminal cartel prosecution - more to follow?
On 26 January 2015, two individuals entered pleas of not guilty to criminal cartel charges brought under the Enterprise Act 2002. Although there have only been a handful of convictions to date, recent...
View ArticleClik here to view.
State aid: UK flood insurance scheme gets Commission green light
The European Commission has given State aid approval to a UK scheme designed to make sure that owners of properties at risk of flooding can obtain affordable insurance. The scheme, known as 'Flood Re'...
View ArticleClik here to view.
UK merger control update - magazines, lubricants and pork pies.
It has been a busy start to the year for the Competition and Markets Authority's (CMA) merger control teams, with the CMA identifying possible concerns arising from no less than four deals in January....
View ArticleClik here to view.
Public Contracts Regulations 2015 set to come into force February 2015
On 5 February 2015, the government published the final form of the new Public Contracts Regulations 2015. The new regulations transpose the new EU public sector procurement directive (Directive...
View ArticleClik here to view.
EU Parliament sets up 'special committee' as State aid tax probe continues
The European Parliament has set up a special committee to examine whether Member States broke EU rules by offering tax breaks to large multinational companies. The move may disappoint some MEPs, who...
View ArticleClik here to view.
EU Commission investigates UK power plant proposals
The European Commission has announced that it has opened an in-depth State aid investigation into UK plans to give financial support to the biomass conversion of the coal fired Lynemouth power plant....
View ArticleClik here to view.
Today's the day! New Public Contracts Regulations 2015 now in force
The new Public Contracts Regulations 2015 are in force from today in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The government published the final form of the new Regulations on 5 February 2015, following a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA seeks information on online reviews and endorsements
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has invited views from the business community and consumers on the development of online reviews and endorsements. Online reviews and endorsements are...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA consults on competition redress scheme guidance
In October 2015, the Consumer Rights Act is expected to come into force. The Act will introduce a new type of alternative dispute resolution for parties to competition investigations, allowing them to...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA fines estate agents for anti-competitive conduct
An association of estate and lettings agents in Hampshire, three of its members and a newspaper publisher, have agreed to pay penalties totalling more than £775,000 after they admitted breaching...
View ArticleClik here to view.
EU competition authority's review of online commerce gets underway
The European Commission formally launched its promised inquiry into the e-commerce sector yesterday. In March, Margrethe Vestager, the EU's Commissioner in charge of competition policy, indicated her...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Competition authority warns estate agents and newspaper publishers over...
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has issued two open letters, one to the property industry and one to newspaper publishers, reminding them that they must comply with competition law. The...
View ArticleClik here to view.
European Commission settles with parking heater producer in cartel investigation
The European Commission ('the Commission') has announced that it had used its fast track settlement procedures to investigate and impose fines in respect of a parking heater cartel. The Commission...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA consults on energy market reforms
Following a year long investigation, the Competition and Markets Authority ('CMA') has published its provisional report into UK energy markets. The investigation was triggered by a reference from The...
View ArticleClik here to view.
European Copyright Law - four megatrends
With concrete proposals for amendments to European copyright law not due until this autumn, now is a good time to take stock. Below we take a look at four 'megatrends' in European copyright law, which...
View ArticleClik here to view.
European Commission rules Fiat and Starbucks tax arrangements illegal
Following an investigation, the European Commission has ruled that the so-called 'tax rulings' issued to Starbucks in the Netherlands and to Fiat in Luxembourg broke EU State aid rules. Tax rulings are...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Retail banking worse than energy for consumer switching
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has found that competition between banks in the retail banking sector is not as meaningful as it should be with low levels of customer switching being the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Private enforcement of Competition Law invigorated
The Consumer Rights Act 2015 (the CRA 2015), which came into force on 1 October 2015, seeks to open up private enforcement of competition law in England to a wider class of claimants. England: the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA launches competition investigation into sports equipment sector
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has announced that it has launched a competition law investigation into the sports equipment sector. At this stage it is unclear who - or what - the CMA is...
View ArticleClik here to view.
FCA warns businesses on competition law compliance
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has taken steps to require various businesses to implement competition law compliance programmes, in light of concerns that came to light in a broader review that...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Record fines for GSK in the UK's first 'pay-for-delay' competition case
The Competition and Markets Authority's (CMA) recent £45 million fine on GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and two other companies is the latest in a series of competition enforcement action in the pharmaceutical...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Crackdown on cartels in the UK
On 21 March 2016, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced major developments in two of its ongoing cartel investigations, providing a welcome boast to the authority's enforcement...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The inspector calls - handling dawn raids by the competition authorities
It's 9.30am. You are in the office, catching up on your emails before heading into back to back meetings that will take up most of the day. Little do you know that this is the calm before the storm....
View ArticleClik here to view.
EU Referendum result: Shoosmiths experts comment
Shoosmiths' experts in competition, employment, real estate, corporate and commercial comment on the EU referendum result. Competition Law Simon Barnes, head of EU and competition at Shoosmiths The...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Competition authorities consult on online travel agents' pricing practices
Working in collaboration with other competition authorities across Europe, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched a consultation on the pricing practices of online travel agents...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA issues £2.7m fine for restricting online prices
CMA fines light fittings supplier £2.7 million for restricting online prices and sends out further warning letters to others in the industry. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has fined the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA Revises Thresholds for the De Minimis Exception
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has published new guidance on the thresholds for the 'de minimis' exception when deciding not to raise competition concerns in relation to merges involving...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Landmark internet sales competition case nears conclusion
On 26 July 2017, the eagerly anticipated Coty case took a further step towards reaching a conclusion, through the publication of the Advocate General's Opinion (AG's Opinion). The EU Court of Justice...
View ArticleClik here to view.
EU Court of Justice supports the economic analysis of exclusivity rebates
The EU Court of Justice's decision to refer the Intel case back to the General Court highlights the role of an economics based approach in determining whether exclusivity rebates breach competition...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA cracks down on cartel risks in the estate agency sector
To coincide with the publication of its decision to fine five estate agents for engaging in a price-fixing cartel, the CMA has issued guidance - and a further warning - to the estate agency sector. The...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA sends an open letter to the creative industries on competition law...
After fining five modelling agencies for collusion on prices, the Competition and Markets Authority, CMA, is concerned that companies in the fashion, design and other creative industries do not have...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The CMA launches a market study into the investment consultants sector
The Financial Conduct Authority, FCA, has made its first ever reference to the Competition and Markets Authority, CMA, asking it to carry out a full market investigation to ensure the market is...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Luxury good suppliers don't have to allow sales through online marketplaces
On 6 December, the European Court of Justice ('ECJ'), confirmed in its judgment in the Coty case that the EU competition rules do not prevent suppliers of luxury branded goods from restricting...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Estate agents under CMA scrutiny for collusion
The UK competition regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has opened a new investigation into the residential estate agents' market. It has not yet named the companies involved. The...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA secures real estate agent director disqualifications
On Tuesday 10 April, the UK competition regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced that it secured the disqualification of two directors of the Abbott and Frost Estate Agents Ltd...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Brexit: Where are we now?
The first anniversary of the UK's Article 50 withdrawal notice has now passed but, with less than a year to go until the UK formally leaves the EU, how much progress has been made? The transitional...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA launches competition review of the funerals sector
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched a market study into funeral services. A market study allows the CMA to investigate whether a given market is working well for consumers and to...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA steps closer to regional businesses with planned Manchester office
Andrea Coscelli, CEO of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has indicated that the UK competition law regulator may step closer to regional businesses with plans to open an office in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
UK Government publishes plans for the competition law regime if there's no...
On 13 September 2018, the UK government published guidance on the application of competition law and merger control if there is no Brexit deal. The guidance forms part of the Government's broader...
View ArticleClik here to view.
CMA to investigate loyalty penalty super-complaint
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has 90 days to respond to a super-compliant lodged by the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) over its concerns that customers are suffering across a variety of...
View Article
