We have very significant experience on competition issues, and very particular experience in the automotive, banking, chemicals, energy, technology, telecommunications, media, food, tobacco, pharmaceuticals, raw materials and commodities industries. Members of our firm have participated in legislative committees for the drafting of bills on consumer protection and unfair competition. We are a recommended firm in competition law 1.
Our Competition practice extends to all aspects of Anti-Trust (Abuse of dominance, Practices Restrictive of Competition, Merger Clearance, Public Undertakings, State Aid, Competition related litigation, Compliance programs), and Unfair Competition.
In the past few decades, globalization inevitably forced previously over-regulated industries to be liberalized and become exposed to competition. The market is changing in response to multiple strategic alliances, complex mergers and vertical integration. EU competition policy constantly changes to meet today’s challenges and directly affects the Greek law.
Being one of the first law firms in Greece that focused on national and EU competition rules, we have been keeping pace with the evolution in this field, all along. We have been working along with colleagues from foreign law firms on projects of clients that are of EU significance, in relation to the effects that they may have in Greece, especially in regard to mergers, but also in regard to the distribution of goods or horizontal co-operation. We have been especially active in the demanding field of the interaction of competition law and Intellectual Property Rights and the challenges that network industries provide from a competition law point of view. Our expertise covers all issues related to compliance with the rules of free competition by corporate clients and their employees in particular. Members of our firm have, repeatedly, over the years, undertaken to organize and run closed training seminars dedicated to the personnel of individual clients.
We routinely represent clients in proceedings before the Competition Committee, the National Telecommunications and Post Commission (EETT) and the Administrative Courts, in cases involving alleged abuse of a dominant position, vertical or horizontal restraints, etc. but have also acted as expert witnesses in arbitration procedures concerning competition law issues. We assist our clients in meeting regulatory requirements for the notification or approval of mergers/acquisitions, either domestic or cross-border, often in cooperation with foreign law firms.
1 under LEGAL 500
Given the fact that under Greek jurisprudence, it is well established since the 1990s that an infringement of the anti-trust regulation triggers the provisions of general liability in tort, we have extensive experience representing clients in litigation before Civil Courts in private claims for the compensation of damages incurred due to anti-competitive practices, a matter of increased importance, after the relevant developments in the EU law.
Ιn the field of unfair competition, we have extensive experience in developing strategies for the protection of business and trade secrets and know-how. We advise on the protection of the business goodwill and on the defence against unfair trading practices, (e.g. unlawful solicitation of clientele or personnel, infringements of distinctive marks, trademarks, etc).
We regularly offer advice on issues related to consumer protection within all scopes of retail sales, provision of services and e-commerce. We help our clients develop policies concerning product warranties (e.g. for eventual defective products, long distance sales etc).
We have extensive experience in protecting against false or deceptive advertising, misleading comparisons with competitors; to this end, we cooperate closely both with clients and advertising agencies and often represent clients and/or advertising agencies before the Advertisers Code of Conduct Committee, in regard to advertising complaints.
We represent our clients before civil courts, with emphasis on injunctions, which are very important in defending against unfair trading practices in the most expedient manner possible.