Webinar: Competition law and product regulations - avoiding pitfalls when joining forces in the food and beverage sector
Speakers
As a general rule, companies are required to self-assess whether any cooperation or agreements they enter into are antitrust compliant. This is particularly true when it comes to cooperation with competitors, which finds itself in the cross-hairs of competition law enforcement around the world. The rules are strict and assessment can sometimes be difficult, often requiring specialist knowledge to avoid the pitfalls and being labeled as a cartel.
The COVID-19 outbreak has, in certain cases, made more cooperation possible and getting legal certainty easier.
This webinar, structured as a Q&A session, will cover topics such as platforms, cooperation when introducing new products and the impact of COVID-19, to provide examples and help guide you in your potential collaboration with competitors.
Platforms
- Horizontal and vertical cooperation
- Digitalisation
Introduction of new products
- Regulatory approval of new products (where companies must join forces and collaborate)
- Exchange of data
- Need for collaboration
Impact of COVID-19
- Lessons learned
We welcome your questions in advance, during and after the session. To send us your questions ahead of the broadcast, please use the question box on the registration page.
After the webinar, you may request a certificate of participation by clicking here. Please note this certificate is not for a specific jurisdiction.
Speakers
Morten Nissen
Partner and co-head of global competition and EU practice group
Bird & Bird (Copenhagen)
Morten is co-head of Bird & Bird's international competition and EU practice group.
Until the end of 2012 Morten was based in Brussels, Belgium. During his 12 years practising in Brussels, Morten was ranked as a leading competition law specialist at the European level by legal directories. He’s now ranked for Denmark as well, described in Legal500 2020 as "a creative competition lawyer" ” and “among the most progressive competition lawyers in Denmark”. He was awarded a Client Choice Award for the category of competition law by Lexology in 2019.
Morten's focus is primarily on restrictive practices, abuse of dominance and state aid on the side of multinationals and industry associations. He particularly focuses on using competition law as a tool to obtain specific and measurable commercial goals.
Morten has solid litigation experience before the European courts in Luxembourg, and as part of a select group of internationally recognised lawyers, he is regularly hired by the Legal Service of the European Commission to plead cases for them at the European Court of Justice.
Nicolas Carbonnelle
Counsel, food and beverage sector group lead
Bird & Bird (Brussels)
As counsel in Bird & Bird's regulatory and administrative practice in Brussels, and food and beverage sector group lead, Nicolas provides hands-on advice and assistance to clients in public, administrative and regulatory law matters. He notably advises companies on the regulatory requirements for highly technological and innovative products in regulated sectors, with a focus on the food & beverage, life sciences and chemicals industries.
Nicolas advises food and beverage clients on regulatory law, from general food law and labelling requirements, such as health and nutrition claims, to highly regulated forms of food products including novel foods and nutraceuticals, on borderline product classification and on regulatory path definition and compliance strategies.
Nicolas also provides day-to-day advice and litigation on European and Belgian public and administrative law, including town planning and environmental law, public procurement, public service and constitutional law.
Nicolas work in French, English and Dutch.