Antitrust, competition and trade

We advise on a complete range of competition/antitrust, regulatory and trade issues including merger control, licensing and distribution, intellectual property, restrictive practices, market dominance, state aid, cartel investigations, liberalisation, privatisation, public procurement and trade, including World Trade Organisation matters. We have a substantial litigation practice, regularly appearing in the European and national courts on EU law, antitrust/competition and trade cases.

We also advise on the EU and US antitrust aspects of various M&A transactions; cartel investigations; competition compliance matters; and in relation to a range of commercial agreements including licensing and distribution matters.

Some examples of our advice on chemical issues:

  • Bayer on a wide range of matters, including the European antitrust aspects of its acquisition of Aventis Crop Science and the conclusion of worldwide licence and distribution agreements for certain insecticides;
  • Cognis and Degussa on the implementation of antitrust compliance programmes;
  • Degussa, Cabot and Columbian Chemicals on an antidumping complaint and procedure concerning imports of carbon black from Russia and Egypt;
  • Messer Griesheim on the European and US antitrust aspects of its sale of its operations in Germany, the UK and the US to Air Liquide;
  • Rhodia on state aid issues in connection with a production plant in former East Germany;
  • Solvay on a wide range of matters, including the European antitrust aspects of its acquisition of Ausimont from Montedison and on various distribution agreements;
  • Wacker Chemie on a range of matters including several merger filings to the European Commission and various other competition authorities and on commercial agreements and antidumping proceedings in the EU and China;
  • Several chemical companies in European Commission and/or US Department of Justice competitive conduct investigations into the agrichemicals, carbon fibre, citric acid, methionine, methylglucamine, sodium gluconate, sorbates, vitamins and zinc phosphate markets.

News

Freshfields advises BASF on proposed takeover bid for Ciba View

Briefings

Carbon Crush: ICIS Chemical Business 14-20 July 2008  View

REACH: what the EU’s new chemical reforms mean for consumer products companies  View

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