On 4 June 2020, Advocate General Kokott (“AG”) delivered her Opinion in Case C-591/16 P Lundbeck v Commission. The AG proposed that the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”) should dismiss Lundbeck’s appeal against the General Court (“GC”) judgment and uphold the European Commission (“EC”)’s fine on Lundbeck for anticompetitive agreements aimed at delaying the marketing … Read more
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a rush of applications to the ACCC seeking to authorise coordination as between competitors which might otherwise contravene provisions of the Competition and Consumer Act (CCA). The ACCC has responded quickly and dedicated significant staff to assess these applications. As of 8 April 2020, the ACCC has made 16 COVID-19 interim … Read more
Herbert Smith Freehills has published a new global guide on supply chain difficulties arising from the COVID-19 pandemic and associated restrictions. The guide explores issues around: maintaining the links in the supply chain; competition law issues; product-related issues; and the suspension and termination of contracts. In each area, the guide suggests practical steps to consider … Read more
The Indonesian Competition Commission (“KPPU”) has been scrutinizing several business sectors following the global economic slowdown as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. These sectors are primarily healthcare services, medical equipment, and essential commodities (food). One currently booming sector under watch by KPPU is healthcare. On April 14, KPPU issued a press release (Press Release … Read more
On 8 April 2020 the Commission published a ‘Temporary framework for assessing antitrust issues related to business cooperation in response to situations of urgency stemming from the current COVID-19 outbreak’ (Temporary Framework). The Commission recognises the exceptional challenges faced by some businesses as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, which may require cooperation in order … Read more
The Spanish National Markets and Competition Commission (Comisión Nacional de los Mercados y la Competencia, or “CNMC”) has announced that, although administrative terms and deadlines have been suspended as a result of the state of emergency announced by the Spanish government, it will continue to handle all proceedings that are necessary to safeguard the general … Read more
The European Commission (the “Commission“) has launched an “evaluation and fitness check roadmap” of its 1997 Notice on the definition of relevant market for the purposes of Community competition law (the “Notice“). The Notice provides guidance on how the Commission uses the concepts of relevant product and geographic markets in its enforcement of EU competition … Read more
On 28 March 2020 three Orders excluding certain types of agreements from the Chapter I prohibition (prohibition on anti-competitive agreements) under the Competition Act 1998 came into force: The Competition Act 1998 (Groceries) (Coronavirus) (Public Policy Exclusion) Order (“Groceries Exclusion Order”) The Competition Act 1998 (Health Services for Patients in England) (Coronavirus) (Public Policy Exclusion) … Read more
Updated 14 April 2020 The global COVID-19 pandemic has, to an extent, re-directed some of the actions and focus of competition authorities, which are placing increasing scrutiny on several strategic industries to ensure they do not profit from the crisis. Some of these developments, as outlined below, are relevant to the pharmaceutical industry (for information … Read more
