Proposed UK Reforms To Merger Process Offer Wider Small Market Exception And Better Engagement With Senior Officials On Merits And Remedies.

Bill Batchelor – Partner, Antitrust/Competition, Skadden
bill.batchelor@skadden.com

Edward W. (Bill) Batchelor has 20 years of EU and U.K. competition law experience and focuses his practice on conduct investigations, including abuse of dominance, cartels and vertical agreements. 

Related Capabilities

Antitrust/Competition Europe Cross-Border Investigations European Union/International Competition Life Sciences and Health Care Litigation Media and Entertainment Gaming CFIUS Financial Institutions Regulation and Enforcement

Mr. Batchelor regularly represents clients on EU and global merger control matters and litigation, and provides counsel on distribution and collaboration agreements in complex and highly regulated industries, such as health care, financial services, insurance, media and entertainment, and gambling, among others.

Mr. Batchelor has spent time working in Brussels, London and Washington, D.C., as well as at EU and U.K. competition authorities. He has been recognized as a leader in his field in publications such as Chambers Global, Chambers Europe, IFLR1000, Who’s Who Legal: Competition and The Legal 500, as well as Benchmark Litigation, in which he was named a 2021 Litigation Star for Belgium – EU Competition. Mr. Batchelor serves as vice chair of the British Chamber of Commerce competition law and Brexit committees, as well as vice chair of the American Bar Association’s Antitrust Section Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Committee.

Among his recent experience, Mr. Batchelor has:

• represented Activision Blizzard Inc. in its pending $75 billion acquisition by Microsoft Corporation. This is the largest-ever technology deal and the largest-ever gaming industry deal;
• represented PayPal in the phase 2 Competition Markets Authority (CMA) inquiry into the US$2.2 billion acquisition of iZettle, securing clearance without conditions;
• represented Viagogo in the phase 2 CMA inquiry into its US$4 billion acquisition of StubHub, securing clearance with remedies;
• represented Sabre in the phase 2 CMA inquiry into its US$360 million acquisition of Farelogix and subsequently in the appeal proceedings before the Competition Appeal Tribunal;
• represented Netflix, Inc. in its acquisition of The Roald Dahl Story Company Limited, which manages the literary works, copyrights and trademarks of author Roald Dahl;
• represented Zuber and Mohsin Issa, owners of EG Group, and TDR Capital LLP, in the phase 1 CMA inquiry into their US$8.7 billion acquisition of a majority stake in ASDA Group Limited from Walmart Inc., securing clearance with remedies;
• represented Gilead Sciences, Inc. in its US$5.1 billion transaction with Galapagos NV. This transaction was named M&A Deal of the Year at the IFRL1000 Europe 2020 Awards;
• represented Dyson before the EU courts challenging labeling regulations favoring competing vacuum cleaners. This case was named an Impact Case of the Year at the Benchmark Litigation 2020 Europe Awards;
• represented Warner Bros. in settling the European Commission’s cross-border pay-TV investigation;
• represented ZeniMax in settling the European Commission’s video games investigation;
• represented a major automotive parts supplier in a European Commission auto parts investigation;
• advised on merger control and joint ventures in relation to the BP/Nova styrenics joint venture (for BP); Cisco/WebEx (for Cisco); Bain/American-Standard (for American Standard); OTPP/Camelot (for OTPP); Canal+/TVN (for Canal+); Warner Bros./Eyeworks (for Warner Bros.); and ADM/Wilmar (for ADM);
• annulled a cartel decision and fines of €519 million involving the synthetic rubber cartel;
• annulled a €119 million fine involving the GIS cartel;
• secured one of the lowest negotiated settlements in the seven-year-long DRAM investigation, halving the fine in the Windows Mountings case based on financial distress;
• secured immunity or substantial leniency discounts in the pipe fittings, citric acid and sodium gluconate cartels;
• settled the investigation of a large multinational bank in the EU Belgian banks cartel investigation;
• settled the 9/11 aviation insurance cartel inquiry on behalf of a major reinsurer;
• represented a pharmaceutical company before the General Court in an alleged “reverse payment” settlement agreement; and
• represented KirchMedia (now Infront), and subsequently FIFA, before the EU courts reversing EU decisions mandating free-to-air coverage of the FIFA World Cup.