Watchdog steps up probe of Just Eat and Hungryhouse merger – Daily Telegraph

Posted May 19th, 2017 in competition, mergers, news by tracey

‘The competition watchdog has confirmed it will begin an in-depth investigation into Just Eat’s proposed £200m merger with Hungryhouse.’

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 19th May 2017

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Brexit and implications for UK Merger Control – Part 3/3: Managing and prioritising the CMA’s mergers workload – Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers

Posted May 16th, 2017 in brexit, competition, EC law, mergers, news, treaties by sally

‘The Competition Bulletin is pleased to welcome the third in a three-part series of blogs on Brexit and merger control by Ben Forbes and Mat Hughes of AlixPartners. Ben and Mat are (with others) co-authors of the new Sweet & Maxwell book, “UK Merger Control: Law and Practice”.’

Full story

Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers, 16th May 2017

Source: www.competitionbulletin.com

District urges neighbouring councils to clarify legal process for planned merger – Local Government Lawyer

Posted March 9th, 2017 in consultations, local government, mergers, news by sally

‘Sedgemoor District Council has urged its neighbours, Taunton Deane and West Somerset Councils, to clarify the legal process to be used for their proposed merger.’

Full story

Local Government Lawyer, 8th March 2017

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Brexit and implications for UK Merger Control – Part 2/3: Implications for the CMA’s workload and what not to do – Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers

Posted February 15th, 2017 in brexit, competition, EC law, mergers, news, referendums by sally

‘The Competition Bulletin is pleased to welcome the second in a three-part series of blogs on Brexit and merger control by Ben Forbes and Mat Hughes of AlixPartners. Ben and Mat are (with others) co-authors of the new Sweet & Maxwell book, “UK Merger Control: Law and Practice”.’

Full story

Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers, 10th February 2017

Source: www.competitionbulletin.com

Brexit and implications for UK Merger Control – Part 1/3: Should UK merger control filings be mandatory? – Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers

Posted January 24th, 2017 in brexit, competition, EC law, mergers, news, treaties by sally

‘The Competition Bulletin is pleased to welcome the first in a three-part series of blogs on Brexit and merger control by Ben Forbes and Mat Hughes of AlixPartners.’

Full story

Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers, 23rd January 2017

Source: www.competitionbulletin.com

All change – Counsel

Posted October 31st, 2016 in barristers, inns of court, legal aid, mergers, news by sally

‘Catherine Baksi takes a look at how chambers are adapting to a pressured and competitive environment.’

Full story

Counsel, November 2016

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

Merger of electronic toy suppliers subject to UK competition investigation – OUT-LAW.com

Posted September 1st, 2016 in competition, mergers, news, reports by sally

‘The proposed merger of two suppliers of electronic gadgets for children will be the subject of an in-depth competition investigation in the UK.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 31st August 2016

Source: www.out-law.com

The UK Competition Regime and the CMA – OUP Blog

Posted April 19th, 2016 in competition, enforcement, fines, mergers, news, reports by sally

‘On 5 February 2015, the National Audit Office (NAO) published a report entitled ‘The UK Competition Regime’. The report assesses the performance of the UK competition regulators, focusing on the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). It concludes that the CMA has inherited certain strengths, including a positive legacy of merger and market investigation work. However, it has also inherited problems in competition enforcement, which derive, according to the NAO, from a difficult legal environment, very low business awareness of the organisation and competition law more broadly, and reputational damage caused by a series of high profile losses in court.’

Full story

OUP Blog, 19th April 2016

Source: http://blog.oup.com

CMA relaunches merger inquiry into acquisition of three supermarkets- six months after clearance – Zenith Chambers

Posted February 24th, 2016 in competition, EC law, inquiries, mergers, news by sally

‘The CMA is investigating grocer Netto’s completed acquisition of three stores from Co-Operative Group. The announcement of a fresh UK merger control investigation comes in the wake of the CMA’s July 2015 clearance of the transaction and after learning that it should have been notified to the European Commission under the EU Merger Regulation.’

Full story

Zenith Chambers, 5th February 2016

Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk

Plans put forward to integrate HB Public Law and Buckinghamshire legal teams – Local Government Lawyer

Posted February 22nd, 2016 in legal services, local government, mergers, news by sally

‘One of the largest local authority shared legal services could be created later this year if the proposed integration of HB Public Law and the legal services department at Buckinghamshire County Council goes ahead.’

Full story

Local Government Lawyer, 19th February 2016

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Asset acquisitions and mergers: Eurotunnel in the Supreme Court – Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers

Posted January 19th, 2016 in appeals, competition, mergers, news, Supreme Court, transport by sally

‘The Supreme Court’s recent decision in Eurotunnel II ([2015] UKHL 75) brings some much-needed clarity to what was becoming a rather opaque corner of the UK merger regime. It also contains statements of general principle which are bound to make it one of the most frequently-cited merger cases.’

Full story

Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers, 18th January 2016

Source: www.competitionbulletin.com

BT takeover of EE gets final Competition and Markets Authority clearance – BBC News

Posted January 15th, 2016 in competition, mergers, news, telecommunications by sally

‘BT Group’s takeover of mobile phone network EE has been given final clearance by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).’

Full story

BBC News, 15th January 2016

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Adopting new structures for chambers “not so important”, say heads of newly merged set – Legal Futures

Posted September 9th, 2015 in barristers, competition, mergers, news by sally

‘Structures are “far from being as central to the success of a modern set as their proponents suggest”, the joint heads of the newly merged Drystone Chambers have argued.’

Full story

Legal Futures, 8th September 2015

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Asset acquisitions revisited – Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers

Posted September 2nd, 2015 in appeals, bankruptcy, mergers, news, transfer of undertakings by sally

‘Earlier this year, I suggested that the law on when an asset acquisition might amount to a merger was somewhat opaque. The Court of Appeal’s decision in Eurotunnel II [2015] EWCA Civ 487 has brought some additional clarity, although the messy procedural history of that case has caused its own problems.’

Full story

Competition Bulletin from Blackstone Chambers, 1st September 2015

Source: www.competitionbulletin.com

Why do corporate lawyers need to know about human rights? – Halsbury’s Law Exchange

Posted June 17th, 2015 in EC law, human rights, mergers, news, regulations, United Nations by sally

‘Since the adoption of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights in 2011, human rights due diligence requirements are progressively finding their way into hard law, for instance, in reporting and compliance regulations. Examples of recent regulatory developments include the EU Directive on non-financial reporting, the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015, and section 1502 of the US Dodd-Frank Act. Proposals relating to mandatory human rights due diligence have been initiated in the EU, France and Switzerland, and the UN Human Rights Council has now appointed an intergovernmental working group to explore the possibility of a binding treaty on business and human rights.’
Full story

Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 17th June 2015

Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk

In re International Game Technology plc and another – WLR Daily

Posted March 31st, 2015 in company law, law reports, mergers, regulations by sally

In re International Game Technology plc and another [2015] EWHC 717 (Ch); [2015] WLR (D) 148

‘The court had jurisdiction under regulation 16 of the Companies (Cross-Border Mergers) Regulations 2007 (SI 2007/2974) to make an order approving a cross-border merger subject to conditions and that conditionality was merely a factor for the court to take into account in exercising its discretion unless the court was satisfied that a conditional order would be futile.’

WLR Daily, 19th March 2015

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Ryanair says it will fight on after Court of Appeal defeat – Zenith Chambers

Posted March 18th, 2015 in airlines, appeals, competition, mergers, news, tribunals by sally

‘The Court of Appeal has rejected Ryanair’s contention that the Competition Appeal Tribunal was incorrect to uphold the Competition Commission’s order that Ryanair should reduce its stake in Aer Lingus from 28.5 to 5 per cent.’

Full story (PDF)

Zenith Chambers, 16th February 2015

Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk

End of the line for Eurotunnel ferry service as CAT scuppers appeal – Zenith Chambers

Posted March 18th, 2015 in appeals, competition, mergers, news, ships, transport, tribunals by sally

‘Eurotunnel began its cross-Channel ferry service in August 2012 using assets acquired from Sea France after its liquidation in 2011. The transaction was blocked by the Competition Commission in 2013 because it gave Eurotunnel too strong a presence in the cross-channel transportation market. In its 9 January 2015 judgment the Competition Appeal Tribunal dismissed Eurotunnel’s appeal against the decision by the CMA to prohibit the deal for a second time. The judgment is significant when viewed against a background of trades in distressed assets in Europe and internationally. It merits a careful reading for parties seeking to realise value from company liquidations.’

Full story (PDF)

Zenith Chambers, 13th January 2015

Source: www.zenithchambers.co.uk

LeO can hold successor firms to account for inherited complaints, High Court rules – Legal Futures

Posted November 12th, 2014 in complaints, law firms, mergers, news by tracey

‘The High Court has ruled that a law firm cannot escape responsibility for handling complaints relating to a sole practice with which it merged.’

Full story

Legal Futures, 12th November 2014

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

In re Olympus UK Ltd and others – WLR Daily

Posted May 8th, 2014 in law reports, mergers, regulations, shareholders by tracey

In re Olympus UK Ltd and others; [2014] EWHC 1350 (Ch); [2014] WLR (D) 184

‘A proposed cross-border merger where the shareholders in the transferor company had agreed not to receive shares or other securities in the transferee would be compliant with and effective under the Companies (Cross-Border Mergers) Regulations 2007 (SI 2007/2974).’

WLR Daily, 1st May 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk