Third party funding agreements are not DBAs – Hardwicke Chambers

‘The Competition Appeal Tribunal (“CAT”) has today (28 October 2019) handed down its decision in the Trucks Cartel claims dealing with the funding of the claims.’

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Hardwicke Chambers, 28th October 2019

Source: hardwicke.co.uk

Vestel UK Ltd & Anor v HEVC Advance LLC & Koninklijke Philips NV – Blackstone Chambers

Posted October 29th, 2019 in competition, EC law, jurisdiction, licensing, news, patents by sally

‘The High Court has declined jurisdiction over an abuse of dominance claim against HEVC Advance (incorporated in Delaware) and Philips (incorporated in the Netherlands).’

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Blackstone Chambers, 22nd October 2019

Source: www.blackstonechambers.com

Merricks v Mastercard: £14bn appeal to be heard by Supreme Court – Law Society’s Gazette

‘The Supreme Court will rule on a landmark case that will test the standards applied to a Collective Proceedings Order in a major competition claim. Permission has been granted for the defendant in Merricks v Mastercard Incorporated & Anor to bring its appeal against a Court of Appeal ruling from April this year.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 4th October 2019

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

UK fine issued for breach of CMA initial enforcement order – OUT-LAW.com

Posted September 26th, 2019 in competition, electronic commerce, mergers, news, penalties by tracey

‘A payments provider that breached an order to stop the integration of its UK business with a rival until a full merger investigation could be carried out has been fined £250,000 by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).’

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OUT-LAW.com, 26th September 2019

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

Watchdog threatens to refer JD Sports takeover – BBC News

Posted September 19th, 2019 in competition, consumer protection, news, ombudsmen by tracey

‘JD Sports’ takeover of Footasylum is facing greater scrutiny after the competition watchdog warned it could result in “a worse shopping experience for customers”. The Competition and Markets Authority will refer the £90m deal to a “phase 2” investigation, which means it will take a more in-depth look at the tie-up.’

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BBC News, 19th September 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Competition watchdog warns Viagogo court action will continue – The Guardian

Posted July 19th, 2019 in competition, consumer protection, contempt of court, news, sport by tracey

‘The competition regulator has warned Viagogo that contempt of court proceedings against it will continue, despite a legal ruling that the controversial ticket resale company has hailed as a victory.’

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The Guardian, 18th July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

New Judgment: Tillman v Egon Zehnder Ltd [2019] UKSC 32 – UKSC Blog

‘This appeal considered whether the doctrine of restraint of trade is engaged by a restriction on post-employment shareholding, the proper construction of the phrase ‘interested in’ in a non-competition covenant, and the correct approach to severance of a non-competition covenant.’

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UKSC Blog, 3rd July 2019

Source: ukscblog.com

Ofcom wants laws to protect UK companies’ public service content – The Guardian

Posted July 5th, 2019 in competition, internet, media, news by sally

‘The broadcasting watchdog Ofcom has called for new laws to ensure that shows made by UK broadcasters including the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 continue to get top billing on on-demand services such as Sky – but the rules will not apply to Netflix and Amazon.’

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The Guardian, 4th July 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Sainsbury’s-Asda merger blocked by regulator – BBC News

Posted April 25th, 2019 in competition, consumer protection, food, mergers, news by tracey

‘The proposed merger between Sainsbury’s and Asda has been blocked by the UK’s competition watchdog over fears it would raise prices for consumers.’

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BBC News, 25th April 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Merricks v MasterCard: Collective Actions Reinvigorated – Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers

Posted April 17th, 2019 in class actions, competition, consumer credit, consumer protection, news by tracey

‘The Court of Appeal today gave its much-anticipated judgment in the application to bring collective proceedings against MasterCard: see Merricks v MasterCard Incorporated and others [2019] EWCA Civ 674. It is a major victory for the Applicant and will reinvigorate the collective proceedings regime, which has seen disappointingly few cases brought since its introduction in 2015.’

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Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers, 16th April 2019

Source: competitionbulletin.com

Mastercard ruling: almost every UK adult could receive payout – The Guardian

Posted April 17th, 2019 in class actions, competition, consumer credit, consumer protection, news by tracey

‘Almost every adult in the UK could receive a payout of up to £300 from Mastercard after a court ruling paved the way for a £14bn class action lawsuit.’

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The Guardian, 16th April 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Competition watchdog to investigate funeral sector as prices escalate – The Guardian

Posted March 28th, 2019 in burials and cremation, competition, consumer protection, news by sally

‘Britain’s competition watchdog is launching a full investigation into the UK funeral market after it found the cost of organising a funeral increased by 6% each year – twice the inflation rate – for the last 14 years.’

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The Guardian, 28th March 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

CMA challenges call for new UK merger laws – OUT-LAW.com

Posted March 27th, 2019 in competition, enforcement, internet, mergers, news by sally

‘Changes in legislation are not necessary to “prevent mergers in digital markets which could harm existing or potential future competition or innovation”, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has said.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 27th March 2019

Source: www.out-law.com

A warning before bringing an appeal to the CAT? Costs after the BCMR decision – Blackstone Chambers

Posted March 15th, 2019 in appeals, competition, costs, news, telecommunications, tribunals by sally

‘The Court of Appeal’s judgment in the recent BCMR costs case is a stark warning to all those considering challenging a regulatory decision in the Competition Appeal Tribunal: even if you win, you may still face a big costs bill. See British Telecommunications plc v Office of Communications [2018] EWCA Civ 2542.’

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Blackstone Chambers, 5th March 2019

Source: www.blackstonechambers.com

Retrospective interpretation: DSG v MasterCard – Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers

Posted February 20th, 2019 in competition, EC law, limitations, news, tribunals by sally

‘The latest battle over limitation in Competition damages claims was a victory for the claimants – see DSG Retail Ltd v MasterCard Inc [2019] CAT 5. In some ways it is a surprising decision, because the Competition Appeal Tribunal has decided that when s.47A of the Competition Act was enacted in 2003, certain claims which were time-barred prior to its enactment were revived. The Tribunal frankly acknowledged that it did not find the matter straightforward, and looking at the rules it is easy to see why.’

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Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers, 19th February 2019

Source: competitionbulletin.com

Parliamentary report set to savage ‘duplicitous’ Facebook – The Guardian

Posted February 18th, 2019 in competition, data protection, elections, internet, news, reports, select committees by sally

‘Facebook cannot be trusted to regulate itself and must be subject to sweeping new legislation, a parliamentary report will announce on Monday.’

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The Guardian, 17th February 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Digital ad market under fresh scrutiny amid competition concerns – The Guardian

Posted February 13th, 2019 in advertising, competition, inquiries, internet, media, news, public interest by sally

‘Facebook and Google could be forced to open up their businesses and share details of how their advertising model works, after the government backed an investigation into concerns that their dominance of the online advertising business is hurting news publishers.’

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The Guardian, 12th February 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Government sued over no-deal ferry contracts – BBC News

Posted February 12th, 2019 in brexit, competition, contracts, news, public procurement, ships, transport by tracey

‘The government is being sued for its decision to charter firms to run extra ferries, including one with no ships, in the event of a no-deal Brexit.’

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BbC News, 12th February 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Accountancy watchdog criticised over legal services procurement – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted December 19th, 2018 in accountants, auditors, competition, legal services, news, ombudsmen, public procurement by sally

‘The accountancy regulator should adopt a more open procurement policy when tendering for legal and professional services, a review assessing its clout has found.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 18th December 2018

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Faraday Development Ltd v West Berkshire Council: Court of Appeal gives important guidance on development agreements and options, and declares contract ineffective – 11 KBW

Posted December 11th, 2018 in appeals, competition, drafting, local government, news, public procurement by sally

‘The Court of Appeal has given judgment in Faraday Development Ltd v West Berkshire Council [2018] EWCA Civ 2532 . The main judgment was given by Lindblom LJ. The claimant’s appeal against the first instance judgment of Holgate J was allowed, and the Court made the first declaration of ineffectiveness seen in an English public procurement case since the remedy was introduced in 2009 (there has previously been one such declaration in Scotland).’

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11 KBW, 15th November 2018

Source: www.11kbw.com