by Aicha Marhfour in London – PaRR – 09 March 2023 | 13:00 GMT
- Ruling will impact DMU’s powers over overseas tech companies
- Law amendment is an option if CMA loses appeal
- CMA-EC cooperation hampered by lack of formal agreement
The UK agency’s enforcement powers beyond national borders, particularly in the tech domain, will be impacted by an appealed ruling upholding German automakers’ refusal to disclose documents, lawyers have told this news service.
In December the agency fined BMW AG GBP 30,000 (with a GBP 15,000 daily penalty) for failing to provide documents in response to an information request, sent under the CMA’s s. 26 Competition Act powers, in the context of the agency’s probe into automotive recycling.
[…]
“This seriously limits the CMA’s ability to bring global cases,” said Becket McGrath, partner at Euclid Law, referring to the ruling.
In its judgment, the court indicated that the CMA will be granted permission to appeal, with the agency announcing soon after the ruling that it will challenge the decision further. In a reasoned order, dated 8 March, the CAT granted the CMA permission to appeal, as regards BMW.
[…]
McGrath noted the wider political tension which has held up such agreements. “The tricky question is: what level of cooperation can they put in place, absent deeper cooperation? It’s never going to get to the level we had as a Member State of the EU,” he said.
Full article here – for PaRR subscribers.