RBB Economics

RBB is delighted to once again be named as an elite economics practice by Global Competition Review (GCR). Published commentary by GCR in their 2024 listing: "RBB Economics now has over 200 competition-focused economists, making it the largest specialised independent economics consultancy in Europe. Not just a European outfit, though, it has an increasingly global outlook with an office count of 14 and a presence in Europe, Africa, Oceania and now Asia, following its opening of a new branch in Singapore in August 2023. RBB Economics also opened in Milan, Oslo and Sydney during 2023. At the head of the wider practice is managing partner Adrian Majumdar, who brings nearly three decades of experience to the table and was a former chief economist at the UK’s Office of Fair Trading, which preceded the Competition and Markets Authority. Who’s Who Legal: Competition counts him as one of a select few Global Elite Thought Leaders. In total, the firm has 25 nominees in those listings, which reflects the firm’s depth and quality amongst its senior ranks. Simon Bishop, former leader of the practice, retired in April 2023. RBB Economics claims to have advised on more than a third of EU Phase II mergers in the last five years. A notable recent highlight saw it help Norsk Hydro secure unconditional approval from the European Commission for its acquisition of Alumetal following an in-depth probe. The firm also advised French media company Vivendi in its acquisition of Lagardère, which was conditionally approved by the commission after a Phase II investigation. In one of its highest-profile matters, RBB Economics advised US genetic testing company Illumina in its takeover of cancer test-maker Grail. In July 2023, the commission issued a record €432 million gun-jumping penalty against Illumina for unlawfully closing its acquisition before the end of its Phase II probe. Illumina has appealed against the penalty and continues to challenge the agency’s jurisdiction to review and subsequently unwind the deal under Article 22 of the EU merger regulation. Turning to investigations, the firm advised Swedish forestry cooperative Södra in an EU antitrust probe in the wood pulp and water infrastructure sectors. After raiding several companies in both sectors, including Södra, the commission discontinued the investigation due to a lack of evidence. The firm says its litigation practice is growing rapidly and there’s plenty of evidence to back that up. It advises Google in multiple appeals against commission decisions; represents Scania and Nordzucker in follow-on damages litigation arising from the EU trucks and sugar cartels, respectively; and supports K-Line in litigation filed by Volkswagen against companies in the roll-on, roll-off shipping cartel. GCR 100 2024" #GCR100 #Competition #CompetitionEconomics #RBBEconomics

Following a complaint by Up & Running (a retailer of running shoes and other sportswear), the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) determined that Deckers (which supplies HOKA running shoes) operated a distribution system that amounted to a by object infringement of the Chapter I prohibition (and fell outside of the protection of the VBER/VABEO).    The CAT clarified that a distribution system that does not meet the Metro criteria will not necessarily give rise to an object infringement or fall outside the VBER/VABEO. However, in this case, it considered that the only objective of Deckers’ distribution policy was to restrict price competition, as opposed to other legitimate aims (e.g., to promote the HOKA brand).    The CAT also accepted the market definitions and market share estimates produced by RBB Expert, Adrian Majumdar, which demonstrated that Deckers had a low market share as a wholesaler of specialised running shoes in the UK, and that Up & Running accounted only for a small share of purchases in that market. Adrian worked alongside Iestyn Williams, Lucy Holden and Mankwan Ma from RBB. RBB was instructed on behalf of Deckers by Stobbs. https://lnkd.in/dqgMtqhD #CompetitionLaw #CompetitionLitigation #MarketDefinition

An RBB team was instructed to assist Autoliv and ZF/TRW (both suppliers of occupant safety systems) during the trial stage of their litigation with the Stellantis Group. The matter concerned a claim by the Stellantis Group that it had suffered loss as a result of alleged anticompetitive agreements involving Autoliv and ZF/TRW in relation to the supply of airbags, seatbelts and steering wheels to Peugeot SA, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Vauxhall Opel. RBB expert, Adrian Majumdar, gave evidence in the hot-tub and was cross-examined, inter alia, in relation to econometric estimates of alleged overcharge and pass-on. Adrian worked alongside an RBB team comprising Katie Curry, Joost Vandenbossche, Tim Reuter, Hendrik Meder, and Aidan Heijmans. RBB was instructed by White & Case LLP on behalf of Autoliv and by Macfarlanes on behalf of ZF/TRW. The parties are awaiting the CAT’s judgement. https://lnkd.in/e2keM7HQ #CompetitionLaw #CompetitionLitigation

In August 2024, the European Commission published its Draft Guidelines on exclusionary abuses of dominance. The stated aim of the Draft Guidelines is to reflect the EU courts' case law on exclusionary abuses in light of the extensive experience gained by the Commission in the enforcement of Article 102 TFEU. This, argues the Commission, will help increase legal certainty, to the benefit of consumers, businesses and the national competition authorities and national courts.   In response to the public consultation, RBB has submitted a reply setting out a number of observations.    In our view, the Draft Guidelines should balance three key objectives: (i) competitive outcomes: promoting pro-competitive behaviour while deterring anti-competitive conduct, and thereby benefiting consumers; (ii) ease of compliance and administrability: providing clear and implementable guidance to practitioners and businesses; and (iii) legal consistency: reflecting the (evolving) caselaw on exclusionary abuse. Achieving the right balance is crucial to ensure the guidelines fulfil their purpose without causing unintended negative consequences.   Read our full response here: https://lnkd.in/ecUUpYb6   #CompetitionLaw #CompetitionPolicy #Article102 #AbuseofDominance

On 18 November Women AT will celebrate five years in The Netherlands with an event looking at where competition law has been and where it's going. It promises to be an enjoyable afternoon and evening stock-taking and stock-reshaping, debating and dancing! RBB’s Jennifer Swart is looking forward to participating in the panel session discussing recent considerations around non-price competition. Find full details and registration link on the W@ website here: https://lnkd.in/e8mcm9Fx #CompetitionLaw #CompetitionPolicy

RBB's Vitaly Pruzhansky and Marta Gligorijevic are looking forward to participating in Kinstellar’s Competition Law in CEE Conference on 15 November 2024 in Belgrade, Serbia. Vitaly will join the panel discussion on competition and the current trends in the FMCG industry. Marta will join the panel on navigating competition law challenges. This event will bring together leading experts to explore the latest developments and challenges in competition law across the CEE region, providing valuable insights across various sectors. This event is exclusively for Kinstellar invitees. For more information visit the Kinstellar event page: https://lnkd.in/ecMe9Xf4 #CompetitionLaw #Antitrust

𝐌ø𝐭 𝐨𝐬𝐬 𝐢 Å𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐧𝐝 7. 𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫: 𝐊𝐨𝐧𝐤𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐭 𝐩å 90 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫! ☕️I samarbeid med RBB Economics inviterer vi til et praktisk frokostseminar om konkurranserett, skreddersydd for ledere i små og mellomstore bedrifter. ⏰I løpet av 90 minutter vil Stein Ove Solberg, Magnus Høegh Krohn Viddal og Jan Yngve Sand gi deg de viktigste innsiktene fra et compliance-perspektiv, slik at du er bedre rustet til å navigere i den komplekse konkurranseretten. 𝐇𝐯𝐚 𝐤𝐚𝐧 𝐝𝐮 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞? Vi gir deg en grundig gjennomgang av konkurransereglene, med fokus på sentrale compliance-spørsmål som: 👉🏽 Grensene for lovlig og ulovlig samarbeid mellom konkurrenter: 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘵å 𝘩𝘷𝘢 𝘴𝘰𝘮 𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘵 𝘰𝘨 𝘩𝘷𝘢 𝘴𝘰𝘮 𝘬𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘧ø𝘳𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘬𝘰. 👉🏽 Deling av informasjon med konkurrenter: 𝘓æ𝘳 𝘩𝘷𝘪𝘭𝘬𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘫𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘶 𝘣ø𝘳 𝘧ø𝘭𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 å 𝘶𝘯𝘯𝘨å 𝘣𝘳𝘶𝘥𝘥. 👉🏽 Nyttige tips ved inngåelse av kunde- og leverandøravtaler: 𝘍å 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘬𝘵ø𝘺𝘦𝘯𝘦 𝘥𝘶 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳 å 𝘴𝘪𝘬𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘭𝘪𝘨 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘥. 👉🏽 Viktige hensyn ved oppkjøp og fusjoner: 𝘉𝘭𝘪 𝘬𝘫𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘷𝘢 𝘥𝘶 𝘮å 𝘵𝘢 𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘺𝘯 𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘪 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘦. 👉🏽 Sanksjoner – risiko og konsekvenser: 𝘍å 𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘬𝘵 𝘪 𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦 𝘬𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘬𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘷 𝘣𝘳𝘶𝘥𝘥 𝘰𝘨 𝘩𝘷𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘢𝘯 𝘥𝘶 𝘬𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘬𝘺𝘵𝘵𝘦 𝘷𝘪𝘳𝘬𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘥𝘪𝘯. 𝐃𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐛ø𝐫 𝐝𝐮 𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐭𝐚: Vi vet at tiden din er kostbar, og at oversikt over konkurransereglene kan virke overveldende. Dette seminaret er laget for deg som ønsker å styrke virksomhetens compliance-arbeid uten å måtte investere unødvendig mye tid og ressurser. 📍Seminaret er gratis og finner sted på Dampsentralen Pir Cowork i Ålesund 📅Torsdag 7. november ⏰Kl. 08.00-10.00 Meld deg på her: https://shorturl.at/heSlt

Our RBB team are looking forward to attending and participating in the Association of Competition Economics (ACE) conference next month in Milan. Day 1 (13:50) - Miguel de la Mano will speak on the EC airline merger session Day 1 (13:50) - Theon van Dijk will chair the Netherlands telecoms merger session Day 1 (17:15) - Ethel Maia da Fonseca will chair the Portugal telecoms merger session  Day 2 (11:30) - Benoit Durand will chair the Italy retail fuel merger session Access the full agenda here: https://lnkd.in/eY2fsnCf . #CompetitionEconomics

On 24 October 2024, the South African Competition Commission approved the acquisition of Versapak by Sinica. Sinica and Versapak are both involved in the manufacture and supply of polystyrene and PVC film packaging in South Africa. An RBB team including Patrick Smith, Simon Lee, Daniela Lamparelli, and Charl Henri Schoeman advised the parties in the lead-up to the merger filing, and during the Commission’s investigation. The economic assessment covered a range of topics including closeness of competition and vertical effects. The RBB team was instructed by Nortons Incorporated. https://lnkd.in/eaymNKZU #CompetitionLaw #MergersAndAcquisitions #CompetitionRegulation

On 15 November RBB’s George Siolis will participate in the Monash University ’50 Years of Competition Law and Economics in Australia’ conference. The event will commemorate the changes brought about by the Australia Trade Practices Act 1974 as well as providing a platform to discuss trends, reforms and challenges facing this policy field today. George will join the session focusing on merger control and digital markets. The conference will be hosted by Monash Law School and Monash Business School, with support from the ACCC. Date: 14-15 November 2024 Location: The Pavilion, Level 8, Building H, Monash University Caulfield Campus Registration: https://lnkd.in/gQADRDde Monash Law #CompetitionLaw #CompetitionPolicy #CompetitionEconomics #DigitalMarkets #MergerControl