Expertise
COMPLIANCE
COMPETITION
DISTRIBUTION
UNFAIR COMMERCIAL PRACTICES
COMPLIANCE
MAULIN AVOCATS assists you in setting up or updating your competition law compliance program. This support consists, in particular, of comprehensively mapping the competitive risks faced by your company and of defining the do’s and don’ts to comply with.
To this end, MAULIN AVOCATS:
- Carries out investigations, in strict compliance with legal privilege, internal investigations to identify potential competition concerns
- Raises awareness and trains your people to comply with competition law rules
- Draws up competition programs fully tailored to your needs
COMPETITION
Competition law allows you to secure and develop your commercial activities. This may take the following forms:
Complaining before the relevant competition authority
Act against anti-competitive practices implemented by your competitors or suppliers in order to put an end to them as quickly as possible and obtain full compensation for your loss.
Inspections and investigations by competition authorities or the Administration
When facing an investigation or inspection by a regulator, MAULIN AVOCATS assists you in order to protect your rights and interests. In practice, it is key to limit, as much as possible and without exposing to the risk of obstruction, the seizure of documents outside the scope of the investigation.
Securing your pricing policy
In certain market configurations (e.g. hyperinflationary context), regulators are particularly interested in the level of prices charged by companies (even when they are not dominant). In such cases, prices must not be excessive or predatory. As these notions are particularly evolving, MAULIN AVOCATS assists you in bringing your contractual documents and pricing practices fully into line with competition law.
Merger control
Identification of the relevant competition authorities to which a merger must be notified before the transaction is implemented.
Management of multijurisdictional competition notification procedures, including those initiated outside France to obtain clearance.
Prevention of competition risks associated with an acquisition process, in particular with regard to the exchange of commercially sensitive information.
Representation before the relevant competition authorities of companies wishing to oppose a proposed business combination.
DISTRIBUTION
A distribution network’s value and performance depend on certain precautions being taken. In practice this means:
- Preventing and fighting parasitism or counterfeiting practices
- Negotiating or litigating your contractual disputes, in particular in the event of a sudden breach of long-established commercial relations
- Securing your distributors’ online resale practices
UNFAIR COMMERCIAL PRACTICES
Certain commercial or contractual practices are strictly prohibited under French law. This is particularly the case for:
- Submitting one’s commercial partner to obligations that create a significant imbalance
- Obtaining an advantage without consideration, or disproportionate to the service actually provided
- The sudden termination of a long-established commercial relationships
- The abusive implementation of logistical penalties
- Unilateral deduction of disputed claims
These requirements, giving rise to a complex case law, are rigorously taken into account when MAULIN AVOCATS assists you in drafting, negotiating and monitoring your commercial contracts.
