Disputes focused on competition law are an increasing feature of the commercial world. We have long experience of competition disputes, whether in making or defending claims for damages, dealing with competition law defences to intellectual property infringement claims or handling appeals from regulatory decisions.
With both competition law and litigation expertise in the same core team, we are ideally placed to act on competition disputes before both courts and arbitral panels.
Our competition litigation team is truly unusual, being made up of lawyers who have both an in-depth knowledge of competition law across the board and extensive experience of litigation, as well as other types of dispute resolution. That combination sets us apart. It enables us to take a truly integrated approach to cases – strategic and substantive considerations are considered together from the outset.
Our competition team cut its litigation teeth through a succession of ground-breaking cases over the past 25 years where competition law issues have arisen in the context of technology or the enforcement of IP rights.
For more information on the specialist disputes that we continue to handle, see SEP/FRAND disputes.
With the rise in private enforcement of competition law including in arbitration, the team’s long-established expertise means that it is ideally placed to assist clients in such disputes.
Competition damages claims don’t always fit squarely within the confines of a regulatory decision, and we have found ourselves acting on an increasing number of complex ‘hybrid’ claims, often in parallel to appeals from regulatory decisions. Rather than kick a case into the long grass whilst a final regulatory decision is pending, we’ll look for ways to disentangle the various parts and ensure that proceedings are still able to progress. In doing so, we act both for those looking to recover damages and for those defending such claims.
The UK courts are increasingly tackling competition damages claims in manageable ‘chunks’, meaning a number of interim applications will inevitably pave the route to trial. These include jurisdictional disputes, determinations of relevant law, limitation arguments, and the strike-out of key parts of pleadings. We advise on all aspects, from pre-action issues through to settlement or a final hearing – as well as appeals and references to the CJEU, where available. We work with you to navigate the range of strategic options and find the strongest possible position – either as a route to settlement, or to take a case to trial.
Competition disputes are rarely limited to one jurisdiction. We are used to clients taking a multi-jurisdictional approach, and we work collaboratively with the best independent advisors from around the globe. With extensive experience in the life sciences and technology sectors in particular, we know and work with the right economists, accountants and industry experts to assist in clients litigating competition claims in these areas and beyond.
Increasingly, competition claims are also being resolved through arbitration. In sectors such as life sciences and technology, the confidentiality of arbitration as a route to resolving disputes is a major attraction - and that also applies to disputes about anti-competitive conduct or provisions in licences or other commercial agreements. We have considerable experience of alternative dispute resolution, with particular experience of arbitration of competition issues within life sciences disputes.
