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Competition investigations - civil and criminal

The challenges

Competition authorities across Europe and around the world have extensive powers to investigate suspected breaches of competition law.  In some jurisdictions they have criminal penalties at their disposal to punish individuals found guilty.

Competition investigations can be oppressive and costly even if you are finally cleared of any wrongdoing. For those inexperienced in dealing with the authorities the threat of criminal sanctions can be especially daunting.

You need someone who understands the whole process from start to finish, who can advise you on appropriate tactics at each stage. Investigations can frequently escalate and being able to predict where an investigation is headed is crucial.  Your competition lawyers need to be able to deal with the authorities as they get bolder in their application of the law. 

They need to be aware of the difficult HR issues that can arise when trying to strike a balance between disciplining employees who may have been involved in anti-competitive activities and securing their cooperation in making a leniency application. 

How we can help

The number of investigations we have dealt with means we have experience of dealing with all of these issues. Of the investigations on which we have advised and which have come to an end, we have secured non-infringement decisions or case closures on 84 per cent. 

We have extensive experience in securing leniency for our clients, and in negotiating settlement agreements.

Our experience enables us to take a robust approach in dealing with the authorities where this is appropriate. But we are also sensitive to the need for an ongoing constructive relationship with the authority, and we recognise this may outweigh the advantages of an aggressive defence strategy.

For further information about handling civil or criminal competition investigations, please contact us: