Cartel enforcement in Europe has led to dramatic and increasing fines at both national and EU level, a growing number of civil damage claims and criminalization of cartel activities in some countries. Because of the general perception that cartels are extremely harmful to competition and consumers, cartel enforcement is particularly vigorous. The European Commission has been at the forefront of robust enforcement efforts, ever lowering the intervention standard (e.g. pursuing certain information exchanges without requiring agreement nor proof of harm) while increasing the standard for granting amnesty or leniency (demanding increasingly detailed facts before doing so).
The growing worldwide consensus that international cartels harm the economy spurs cooperation between antitrust agencies worldwide. The European Commission and the agencies of EU and non-EU countries – including the US agencies, the Japan and Korean Fair Trade Commissions and many more – routinely coordinate their investigations, which in most cases ensue from parallel amnesty/immunity applications to several agencies. At the same time, as civil damages claims in Europe have proliferated, the discovery threat associated with leniency materials has also increased, further adding to the strategic complexities of managing an unfolding investigation.
Covington has extensive experience in handling complex investigations. Our global network allows us to design a coordinated and prompt response to multijurisdictional investigations. We stand ready to assist clients to develop and implement integrated and cohesive strategies for defending our clients’ interests that are aligned with their corporate cultures. Our cartel practice seamlessly integrates the representation of our clients during the agencies’ investigation with their defense in follow-on civil litigation. Covington is uniquely positioned to assist clients due to our unparalleled experience. The firm’s antitrust attorneys include alumni of various antitrust agencies including the European Commission, and our Brussels office brings together members of the bars of many European jurisdictions as well as US-qualified attorneys. Our cartel practice also draws on the firm’s industry-specific experience in other areas of practice, including life sciences, cutting-edge technologies, energy, and transportation. This experience enables us to bring our sophisticated understanding of specific forces at play in both well-established and emerging industries to readily grasp and act in accord with our clients' needs.
Cartel Investigations and Settlements
Our attorneys have singular experience in handling international antitrust investigations, including their transatlantic aspects and the coordination with Asian agencies such as the Japan and Korean Fair Trade Commissions. We have secured fine exemptions or reductions in a number of high-profile cases before the European Commission, including by way of settlement.
Immunity and Leniency
The explosive growth in the pursuit of cartels has been fueled by the global proliferation of immunity and leniency programs. We regularly assist clients in determining the appropriateness of an immunity/leniency application (is it better to fight or fold?), coordinating such applications in multiple fora, and securing the best possible outcome.
Business Projects and Compliance Advice
Because conduct deemed to constitute a cartel is not limited to multiparty meetings in luxury hotels, we continuously advise companies, joint ventures and trade associations on the antitrust aspects of their business projects, including, e.g., joint production, joint marketing, standard-setting or information exchange and benchmarking.
We also assist clients with internal investigations, conduct antitrust audits, develop codes of conducts and design tailored compliance programs to help our clients avoid or promptly react to competition-law violations.
We provide immediate assistance in case of inspections and dawn raids conducted under EU or national law. On-site inspections are delicate to handle and are often an unpleasant and difficult experience for the targeted companies. We conduct in-house training to better prepare our clients for antitrust inspectors knocking on their door.
Litigation and Claims for Damages
Our European competition team combines in-depth substantive expertise in the competition field with extensive expertise in litigating complex cases. We have an exceptionally robust track record of successfully representing our clients before the European Courts as well as in national litigation concerning antitrust damages spanning various Member States, Germany and the UK in particular.
Representative Matters
- We represented Samsung Electronics in the European investigation into alleged collusion in DRAM, which was the first successful settlement case under EU competition law.
- We secured immunity for Samsung Electronics before the European Commission in its investigation into LCD panel products.
- We act for a major US company in the European Commission’s investigation into alleged collusion in freight forwarding.
- We represent a major car parts manufacturer in the European Commission’s investigation into alleged collusion in the car parts industry.
- We acted for a leading global producer of rubber chemicals in a coordinated international defense strategy in the European Union, United States and Canada.
- We represented Kuwait Petroleum in obtaining leniency under the EU’s program in connection with an investigation into the bitumen market.
- We assisted the European Liner Affairs Association, Container Trade Statistics, World Liner Data, grouping the world’s 21 leading liner shipping companies, in the European Commission’s review of the Conference Block Exemption.
- We represented the American Corporate Counsel Europe as an intervenor in Akzo, the landmark case on European legal privilege.
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