4 Must-Know Cases and Deals

Hi this is ZipLaw! This is our ZipTracker Newsletter where we run through the top court cases and deals law firms acted on so you can use them to stand out in applications. All of them (and more) are added to our ZipTracker database every day.

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Here’s what we’re serving today:

• Court cases involving: Norton Rose Fulbright, Freshfields, Lewis Silkin, Gowling.
• Deals involving: Clifford Chance, Milbank, Mayer Brown and Freshfields.

The following deadlines are coming up! Use ZipTracker to stand out in your applications (we have deals & court cases for all of them) 🙌

• 📅 Lewis Silkin TC - Today
• 📅 Mayer Brown Vac Scheme – Today
• 📅 Norton Rose Vac Scheme – 4 Feb
• 📅 Freshfields First Year – 15 Feb

Car Competition

In Short: The UK Court of Appeal ruled that BMW and Volkswagen must comply with information demands from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), even for documents held outside the UK, in a case involving allegations of anti-competitive practices in the recycled parts industry.

What are the parties arguing?

• CMA: Argued it has the power to demand information from multinational companies like BMW and Volkswagen, including documents held outside the UK, under Section 26 of the Competition Act 1998.
• BMW AG and Volkswagen: Argued that the CMA's demands for documents held outside the UK overstepped jurisdictional boundaries and risked privacy violations in other countries.

Court Decision: The Court of Appeal ruled that the CMA's powers under Section 26 of the Competition Act 1998 do apply extraterritorially, enabling it to request information from multinational corporations, regardless of where the documents are held.

Key Points to discuss:

1. UK Antitrust Law Goes Global: This case highlights how the UK is not shy about extending its legal reach across borders, especially when it comes to keeping multinational companies in check. It's part of a wider movement where countries are getting bolder in applying their laws internationally, particularly in the tech-savvy, interconnected world of business.
2. Who's Part of the "Corporate Family"?: The court's decision sheds light on the term 'undertaking' as used in competition law, showing it's not just about who's doing business in the UK. It's about the whole corporate group, even parts that aren't directly linked to the UK. This could shake up how global businesses think about their structure and legal responsibilities.
3. A Wake-Up Call for Global Businesses: Multinational companies might need to go back to the drawing board with their compliance strategies after this ruling. It's a reminder that they need to be mindful of antitrust laws not just in the places where they have a physical presence but across the globe. This puts more pressure on these companies to be extra careful about how they handle sensitive information and run their operations.

Which Law Firms are advising on this?