p. 87121. Mergers (2): EU law
- Richard WhishRichard WhishEmeritus Professor of Law at King’s College London
- , and David BaileyDavid BaileyProfessor of Practice in Competition Law at King’s College London
Abstract
This chapter examines EU merger control. The chapter is organized as follows. Section 2 provides an overview of EU merger control. Section 3 discusses the jurisdictional rules which determine whether a particular merger should be investigated by the European Commission in Brussels or by the national competition authorities (‘the NCAs’) of the Member States. Section 4 deals with the procedural considerations such as the mandatory pre-notification to the Commission of mergers that have a Union dimension and the timetable within which the Commission must operate. Section 5 discusses the substantive analysis of mergers under the EU Merger Regulation (EUMR), and section 6 explains the procedure whereby the Commission may authorise a merger on the basis of commitments, often referred to as remedies, offered by the parties to address its competition concerns. The subsequent sections describe the Commission’s powers of investigation and enforcement, judicial review of Commission decisions by the EU Courts and cooperation between the Commission and other competition authorities, both within and outside the EU. The chapter concludes with an examination of how the EUMR merger control provisions work in practice.
Keywords
- EU merger control
- One-stop shop
- Merger
- Concentration
- Decisive influence
- Sole control
- Joint control
- Full-function joint venture
- Union dimension
- Turnover
- Undertaking concerned
- Jurisdictional Notice
- Mandatory notification
- Pre-notification referrals
- Post-notification referrals
- Form CO
- Affected markets
- Standstill obligation
- Phase I
- Phase II
- Timetable
- Significant impediment of effective competition
- SIEC
- Market definition
- Market power
- Market shares
- HHI
- GUPPI
- Counterfactual
- Horizontal mergers
- Horizontal merger guidelines
- Non-coordinated effects
- Coordinated effects
- Countervailing buyer power
- Entry
- Efficiencies
- Failing firm defence
- Vertical mergers
- Conglomerate mergers
- Non-horizontal merger guidelines
- Input foreclosure
- Customer foreclosure
- Spillover effects
- Ancillary restraints
- Remedies
- Commitments
- Powers of investigation and enforcement
- Judicial Review
- International cooperation
- Digital platforms
- Privacy
- Innovation
- Foreign direct investment
- Legitimate interest clause
- Defence
- Abandoned mergers
