Overview
McCann FitzGerald's merger control practice is widely considered pre-eminent in Ireland.
We are involved continuously in Irish merger control case work. This includes a substantial proportion of the complex Phase 2 cases and Phase 1 cases settled with commitments.
Since 2003, when Ireland’s current merger control regime came into force, we have had major involvement in approximately one third of transactions filed with the Competition Authority. We also advise regularly on filings to the European Commission under the European Merger Control Regulation (ECMR) cases.
We have a proven ability to articulate successfully legal and economic theory to support our clients’ positions before both the European Commission and the Irish Competition Authority. Our day-to-day involvement in merger control case work and the continuous flow of this type of work allows expertise and excellence to develop in this field.
Expertise
Our Group has advised on most of the landmark effects-based merger decisions over the past five years (and in well over 100 deals in total).
In a number of complex “3 to 2” deals we have secured clearance unconditionally, had several high-profile and industry transformation deals cleared at Phase 1, and never had a deal prohibited.
Some of the deals on which we have acted are:
- Topaz/Statoil (involving significant horizontal overlap across a number of fuel markets)
- BWG/Mangan Bros Ltd (the largest transaction in the retail sector in the last decade)
- Coillte/Weyerhaeuser (the first and only Irish merger filing to date to involve substantive vertical overlap issues)
- Premier Foods plc/RHM plc (the first Irish case to involve substantive divestment remedies)
- Applied Materials/Brooks (a “3 to 2” deal involving the number 1 and 2 players)
- C&C/Largo (involving the sale of Ireland’s leading snack food brand to its only domestic competitor)
- Diageo/Old Bushmills (involving the acquisition by Diageo of its first Irish whiskey brand)
The Group has pioneered the use of competitive effects analysis and economic evidence and testimony in Irish merger control.
Directory Comments
McCann FitzGerald’s Damian Collins splits his time between the firm’s Brussels and Dublin offices and is considered "the go-to guy for EU and competition work", while Philip Andrews is "pragmatic and knowledgeable". The Legal 500, 2010
"McCann FitzGerald has a reputation for being strong academically, but the practice is also extremely commercial", say commentators. The firm is regarded by many as a step ahead in this area, and is the only Irish firm with a full-time partner in Brussels, which clients describe as " undoubtedly a great strength". Chambers, 2010
Ranked as leading in this area... clients were "hugely impressed" by this group's "commercial savvy, responsiveness and first-rate advice". Sources are impressed with lawyers' detailed advice: "They’re really approachable and their opinions always delight us. They can turn them around quickly and they don’t just advise you on what’s happened, but also look at what is likely to happen in the future. Not many firms can do that." Chambers, 2009