French Insights
The most important French decisions and news in competition law now accessible in English
Restrictive competition practices: the Cour de cassation opens up a new shortcut for judicial price control
Resume: The Cour de cassation clarifies the application of article L. 442-6, I, 1° of the commercial code to the price reduction obtained from a commercial partner and confirms the application of the law on restrictive competition practices to subcontracting...
The temporal delimitation in French law of the application of the non-passing on presumption initiated by the European directive
Resume: In a recent decision (Cass. Com., October 19, 2022, No. 21-19.197), the Court of Cassation ruled on the litigation concerning the application of Directive No. 2014/104 in the context of follow-on actions brought before French courts. The dispute involved a...
Landmark Decision in French Private Enforcement of Competition Law: Clarifying Anticompetitive Damage
Resume: The recent Cour de cassation decision (Cass. Com., June 7, 2023, n°22-10.545, 2 11.099, 22-11.100, B) highlights the evolving focus on harm in private enforcement cases. The case addresses the existence of damage, recognition of the umbrella effect, and...
Continuation of commercial relations: effects of a transfer of assets and judicial control over the length of the notice period
Resume: According to the Cour de cassation, when the new owner of a company's activity breaks off its relationship with a partner who was already working with the company, this previous relationship does not count for the calculation of the notice period in the...
Application of the former Continental Can case law: the return of ex-post control of mergers involving abuse of a dominant position
Resume: In a ruling handed down on March, 16, 2023, the Court of Justice of the European Union applied its earlier Continental Can case law to a reference for a preliminary ruling, stating that a competition authority may review an ex post merger for abuse of a...
Meta’s commitment issues, a focus in the online advertisement industry
Resume: On June 16th, 2022, the French Competition Authority accepted the remedies offered by Meta regarding exclusionary conducts the undertaking had had in the online Display advertisement sector. The Authority had expressed competition concerns in its preliminary...
The tricky demonstration of the excessive nature of prices implemented by a de facto monopoly company
Resume: In its decision of July 7, 2021 n° 19-25.586 and n°19-25.602, the commercial chamber of the Court of Cassation ruled on the assessment of the excessive nature of the prices implemented by an undertaking in a dominant position. In doing so, the Court confirmed...
Strict interpretation of commitments: The Paris Court of Appeal overturns the decision of the French Competition Authority condemning PMU for non-compliance with its commitments
Resume: Insisting on the need to precisely define the commitments in light of the competition concerns identified, the Paris Court of Appeal has, for the first time, overturned in its entirety a decision of the French Competition Authority which had condemned the...
Exclusionary practices in a liberalized market: the European Court of Justice gives a new interpretation of the application of Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union
Resume: With each decision, the Court refines its interpretation of the application of Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. This decision was the occasion for the Court to provide a developed interpretation of an abuse in a liberalized...
Abuse of dominant position: the use by a company of his historical position to create confusion at the benefice of his subsidiary
Resume: The French Competition Authority condemned the company Audiens Santé Prévoyance (hereafter Audiens SP) for abuse of dominance in the sector of collective supplementary social protection for entertainment workers, by reaffirming that for a company in a dominant...
The authorization from the French Competitive Authority of the exclusive control of the group Stokomani by the Zouari family, already owner of many specialized stores
Resume: French Competition Authority decides on the legality of the Stokomani group’s (specialized in discount retail products and decoration) acquisition by the Zouari family, already possessing market power in the same field. The point is to reveal if such a merge...
Abuse of a dominant position: tying in the air freight transport of live animals sector to French Polynesia
Resume: By a decision ruled on February 15th, 2022, the French Competition Authority fines the French company Goldenway International pets (GIP), a company specialized in pet transportation, for abuse of a dominant position on tying in the air freight transport of...
The Paris Court of Appeal adopts a strict interpretation of the locus standi and rejects La Poste’s ancillary intervention
Resume: Following the rejection of its complaint to the French Competition Authority, Adrexo filed an appeal to the Paris Court of Appeal for the decision of the Authority to be cancelled. La Poste, which was the alleged author of the practices denounced in the...
The importance of demonstrating a lack of cost impact on the consumer in the event of a claim for compensation in the context of an anti-competitive practice
Resume: By a decision ruled on December 18, 2014, the French Competition Authority fines a company for its participation in an anti-competitive cartel in the personal hygiene products sector. The judgment, ruled on January 5, 2022 by the 5th Chamber of the Appeal...
The French Competition Authority sanctions EDF and its subsidiaries for abuse of a dominant position implying data use they detained from its historical operator position on the electricity market
Resume: In a decision rendered on February 22nd, 2022 (Decision No. 22-D-06), the French Competition Authority fined EDF and its subsidiaries €300 million for abuse of a dominant position as they used data files concerning customers thanks to EDF historical operator...