Clifford Chance

Competition Appeal Tribunal hands down judgment in pre-cast concrete drainage products cartel

6 April 2021

Alex Nourry, Daniel Harrison and Jordan Bernstein explore the key aspects of the Competition Appeal Tribunal's recent decision in FP McCann Ltd v Competition and Markets Authority.

The claimant had been fined by the CMA for participating in the pre-cast concrete drainage products cartel, and thus infringing both Article 101 TFEU and Chapter 1 of the UK's Competition Act 1998. Although the Tribunal upheld the CMA's infringement decision and the quantum of penalty it imposed, its consideration of the claimant's submissions raised several important points, including the extent to which a party can argue that it was adversely affected by the CMA's unreasonable delay in reaching a decision, and whether the maximum fine of 10 percent of an undertaking's turnover should be reserved for only the most serious infringements.

This article was first published by Thomson Reuters, trading as Sweet & Maxwell, 5 Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London, E14 5AQ in the European Competition Law Review as "Competition Appeal Tribunal hands down judgment in pre-cast concrete drainage products cartel" [E.C.L.R. 2021, 42(4) N-47-N-48] and is reproduced by agreement with the publishers.

Download PDF