Overview
It is a fact that, whether as a new entity or as an already existing company in the market looking to expand, EU Competition Law provisions have become a very important part of everyday business and every related transaction. Due to its complex nature and very specific industry-related character, legal advice in the competition area should be provided only by experts, with significant experience and extensive understanding of the client’s needs.
Our lawyers have significant experience in competition, antitrust and State Aid law, having been involved in numerous projects in these areas. Our comprehensive competition practice deals with various matters including merger control, anti-competitive contractual provisions, abuse of dominant position/sole market conduct, investigations conducted by the Romanian Competition Council (RCC), competition litigation, State Aid, trade law, public procurement and industry specific regulations.
In providing assistance to our local and international clients, our experts apply economic theory and methods, grounded in a thorough understanding of the market, in order to provide a full analysis of matters involving competition compliance, mergers and acquisitions, joint venture clearances, antitrust litigation, competition policy, State Aid and unfair competition.
Our team has extensive experience in dealing with regulatory matters which, together with our business and economic expertise, gives us the ability to offer high-quality support to our clients covering the full range of competition matters.
We are also experts in dealing with matters requiring representation on behalf of our clients before the RCC and relevant EU authorities.
We believe that keeping a close eye on the authorities’ practices helps us better understand their approach, and enabling us to offer the most relevant and appropriate advice to our clients.
Our Relevant Experience
- Advised König Frankstahl S.R.L., an important metal distributor, in relation to the simplified merger control procedure before the Romanian Competition Council.
- Advised CCBA Verwaltungs GmbH, part of the German Group Aunde, in relation to the simplified merger control procedure before the Romanian Competition Council.
- Advised one of the most important international companies on the automotive market in relation to competition aspects of their business conduct, promotional mechanisms, etc.
- Advised the most important private railway transport operators in relation to acquisitions of companies and assets in the railway freight transportation market worth multi-millions. Our work included obtaining clearance from the RCC in relation to such operations.
- Advised one of the biggest companies in the Romanian print market in obtaining merger control clearance for the recent acquisition of the printing services of two other active entities in the market.
- Advised a Tier 1 Romanian DIY retailer about the intended acquisition of one of the largest office building projects in Bucharest regarding merger control clearance from the Romanian Competition Council.
- Advised one of the most prominent Romanian agricultural equipment providers in a complex unfair competition case before the RCC.
- Advised a government association in relation to a very sensitive and complex issue regarding a government project of the Bucharest Municipality for the optimisation of thermo-energetic supplying services to Bucharest inhabitants.
Key Contacts
Ana Maria Kusak
Partner
Alexandru Lazar
Associate
Victor Iacob
Managing Associate
Anti-competitive contractual provisions and market behaviour
Since 2010, expert advice on the implications of EU horizontal and vertical rules and regulations has become essential to clients.
We handle a wide range of antitrust cases, using our extensive expertise in assessing concepts such as market definition, market dynamics, entry conditions, pricing, sole market conduct, sensitive information exchange, exclusive and selective distribution, resale price maintenance and resale restrictions (including online sales).
We provide specialised legal advice to our clients through the analysis of anti-competitive practices, including self-assessments, drafting and reviewing agreements in accordance with applicable antitrust regulations and providing legal support during market/sector investigations, including dawn-raids and hearing procedures before the RCC.
Key Contacts
Ana Maria Kusak
Partner
Alexandru Lazar
Associate
Victor Iacob
Managing Associate
Our Relevant Experience
- Advised a security company, part of one of the largest Romanian groups of companies, during the RCC investigation of the Security Services market.
- Advised one of the most important international companies on the automotive market in relation to the competition aspects of the company’s business conduct, promotional procedures etc.
- Advised one of the companies on the pre-paid operations market in relation to the implementation of commitments engaged in with the RCC.
- Advised a broad range of clients from various sectors (e.g., food retail, the bottled water industry, the pharmaceutical sector, flight catering service providers, construction material manufacturers) on various competition law matters related to their day-to-day business, including structuring distribution systems and horizontal cooperation arrangements etc.
- Advised during several dawn-raids carried out by the RCC on leading clients active in business sectors such as IT, air services and milk and dairy, and providing further legal advice during the antitrust investigations initiated by the RCC.
- Advised a large FMCG multinational company on various competition/antitrust matters arising in relation to the company’s market share exceeding 30% on several product markets, as well as advising on agreements with distributors.
- Advised a prominent Romanian bank on competition law matters in relation to MasterCard and Visa agreements.
- Advised one of the most important companies on the direct mailing and security products market during an RCC investigation.
- Advised the largest Romanian company in the para-pharmaceutical market in a detailed review from a competition perspective of template commercial agreements used in its day-to-day activity.
- Advised an important telecoms operator in relation to a competition law assessment on the possible abuse of dominant position by a competitor regarding must-carry TV programmes.
- Advised one of the most important companies on the insurance market during both the dawn-raid and the preliminary stages of an on-going RCC investigation.
Merger Control
We have significant experience in dealing with complex merger control cases and have handled numerous remedy negotiations and their implementation, as well as advising our clients in various Phase II investigations with the RCC.
We have provided expert legal assistance and support in relation to filing for clearance of economic concentration operations of all kinds (mergers, acquisitions (both share and asset), joint-ventures, etc), throughout the RCC’s review process, including representation before the RCC in any eventual hearings, as well as drafting observations on the RCC’s investigation report.
We advise our clients throughout the entire filing process, providing legal assistance with the preparation of all the necessary documentation in support of our clients’ case before the RCC.
Key Contacts
Ana Maria Kusak
Partner
Alexandru Lazar
Associate
Victor Iacob
Managing Associate
Our Relevant Experience
- Advised König Frankstahl S.R.L., an important metal distributor, in relation to the simplified merger control procedure before the Romanian Competition Council.
- Advised CCBA Verwaltungs GmbH, part of the German Group Aunde, in relation to the simplified merger control procedure before the Romanian Competition Council.
- Advised an important German group in obtaining merger control clearance for the acquisition of an Austrian company in the leather market related to the automotive sector.
- Advised one of the biggest companies in the Romanian print market in obtaining merger control clearance for the recent acquisition of the printing activities of two other entities active in the same market.
- Advised the most important private railway transport operator in relation to the acquisition of companies and assets on the railway freight transportation market, worth multi-millions and obtaining clearance from the RCC in relation to the same.
- Advised the largest provider of dialysis services and products at worldwide level on several acquisitions in the Romanian market, specifically in relation to obtaining merger control clearance, including in one very complex acquisition that involved structural and behavioural commitments followed by assistance during the monitoring period.
- Advised on merger control related aspects of the acquisition, by one of the top worldwide French DIY retailers, of a leading Austrian DIY business in Romania.
- Advised a Tier-1 Romanian DIY retailer in relation to obtaining merger control clearance from the RCC for the intended acquisition of one of the largest office building projects in Bucharest.
- Advised a Swedish Private Equity Fund during the merger control proceedings related to the acquisition of several businesses in Romania across various industries such as: decorative paints, washable paints, primers and lacquers, including expandable polystyrene and insulation materials, complex IT solutions for the retail and food industry and home and office water solutions, as well as office coffee solutions.
- Advised on the acquisition by the largest private healthcare service provider in Romania of a high-end chain of dental centres in relation to obtaining merger control clearance.
- Advised an independent investment firm on the acquisition of a European market leader in the construction and management of mobile telecom networks including telecommunications infrastructure (eg. energy solutions, data-centres, niche towers), in relation to obtaining merger control clearance.
- Advised a well-known Italian bank in relation to the competition law aspects of an envisaged joint venture with the Romanian postal service provider, at the latter’s initiative, to offer basic banking services in rural areas.
Unfair competition
Both recently and more often, unfair competition cases are brought before the RCC rather than directly before a court.
We have significant and extensive experience in dealing with unfair competition matters, offering high quality advice to our clients starting with the initial legal assessment of the case and continuing throughout the entire filing process and related investigation by the RCC. We also advise our clients in litigious matters dealing with unfair competition, providing specialised legal assistance and support.
Our Relevant Experience
- Advised one of the most prominent Romanian agricultural utensils provider in a complex case of unfair competition before the RCC.
Key Contacts
Ana Maria Kusak
Partner
Alexandru Lazar
Associate
Victor Iacob
Managing Associate
State aid
On a market only relatively recently opened up such as Romania’s, the State’s involvement in various industries is often frequent and, as a result, State aid is still a very important aspect that needs to be considered. We have extensive experience in dealing with State aid issues, assisting State institutions and private entities alike in various matters involving State aid.
We provide legal advice and support to our clients before the RCC and the European Commission in complex cases, using our wide experience and ability in meeting our client’s needs and ensuring legal compliance with all applicable rules and regulations.
Our Relevant Experience
- Advised an association of private railway operators in a complex case before the EU Commission regarding potentially illegal State aid granted to a State-owned competitor. The case included an investigation opened by the European authority.
- Advised the largest aeronautics and space company in Europe on various proceedings aimed at obtaining State aid for the development of a helicopter manufacturing line in Romania.
Key Contacts
Ana Maria Kusak
Partner
Alexandru Lazar
Associate
Victor Iacob
Managing Associate
