The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has proposed radical changes to the way mergers are regulated in Australia recommending the introduction of a mandatory and suspensory merger review process with limited merits review by the Australian Competition Tribunal. We have three key takeaways: compared to the current process, parties will be required to meet … Read more

By Paul Burton In a decision that will be welcomed by many of Australia’s port operators, for the second time in less than two years, the Federal Treasurer has decided that the shipping channel service at the Port of Newcastle should not be regulated. The Treasurer’s decision on 16 February 2021 is in response to … Read more

We are delighted to share with you the latest update of our report on Foreign Investment: Rising Tides of Politics in Regulation. This edition has been fully updated to reflect the tabling of the National Security and Investment Bill before the UK Parliament, which seeks to introduce a new distinct regime and standalone powers for … Read more

We are delighted to share with you our newly updated report on Foreign Investment: Rising Tides of Politics in Regulation, which reflects a swathe of recent changes to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) regimes around the world against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic. FDI filings have become an increasingly important piece of the regulatory jigsaw … Read more

The Covid-19 health crisis raises substantial challenges for businesses and consumers and has had a significant impact on competition law affecting the consumer sector. While the particular implications will vary by jurisdiction, some common trends may be identified. One broader development is that competition authorities have recognised that certain forms of temporary cooperation between businesses, … Read more

The Full Federal Court has dismissed the ACCC’s appeal in respect of its case against Pacific National and Aurizon. In dismissing the ACCC’s appeal, the Full Federal Court confirmed the test to be applied when assessing whether a firm’s conduct will be likely to have the effect of substantially lessening competition. While this case centred … Read more

On 13 February 2020, the Federal Court of Australia declared that the proposed merger between TPG Telecom Limited (TPG) and Vodafone Hutchison Australia (Vodafone) would not have the likely effect of substantially lessening competition in the retail mobile market, and therefore would not contravene of section 50 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (CCA). … 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