According to the ACCC, “the need for international cooperation [between regulators] has grown as trading across jurisdictional borders has become more frequent and consumers are exposed to more complex transactions occurring across multiple jurisdictions”.
This increasingly collaborative approach by competition agencies has highlighted the need for multinational companies to adopt a coordinated global approach to competition issues, including mergers and antitrust compliance. In turn, this also requires careful coordination between competition advisors around the world.
Lawyers from our offices in Australia, China, Europe and Hong Kong have today published an article which shares our experience with competition regulators in each of these jurisdictions, including:
- each regulator’s general approach to cooperation;
- examples of matters involving cooperation with other jurisdictions;
- mechanisms which facilitate cooperation; and
- information sharing considerations.
Global cooperation, global network
The article, which is available on our global website in English and Chinese, was prepared by:
- Sharon Henrick and James Darch (Australia);
- Kate Peng and Sibo Gao (China);
- Simon Holmes and Emma Radcliffe (Europe); and
- Neil Carabine and James Wilkinson (Hong Kong).
As EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager recently highlighted, international cooperation in antitrust, merger and policy work is a secret weapon: “It’s the fact that we work together. And this is not a luxury. It’s essential. A commitment to competition enforcement at home is no longer enough. We need cooperation and enforcement on a global scale.”
Photo credit: Flickr / mckinney75402 / remixed to B&W
