Dawn Raid Analysis Quarterly

Dawn Raid Analysis Quarterly: 2023 Q1

White & Case Dawn Raid Analysis Quarterly (DRAQ) is an information resource on surprise on-the-spot inspections (dawn raids) across Europe. Here, we guide you through the latest updates and legal developments for 2023 Q1.

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The White & Case Dawn Raid Analysis Quarterly (DRAQ) is an information and discussion resource regarding surprise on-the-spot inspections by antitrust authorities (dawn raids) across Europe. DRAQ provides updates on recent case law, enforcement activity and trends.

2018 to Q1 2023: At a glance

From approximately 60 dawn raids per year by European competition regulators in 2018 – 2019, COVID-19 led to a drop in dawn raid activities in 2020 and the first half of 2021. In the second half of 2021, there was an impressive rebound of dawn raids, which brought the figures back to pre-pandemic levels. While the number in 2022 was comparatively low, the number of raids in Q1 2023 has been steady, with an unusual double act from the EC within a short period of three weeks across February and March 2023 (fragrances and energy drinks).

Over the course of the past five years, the sectors most hit have been—food and beverages, consumer goods and information and communication technology (ICT). A trend that, in light of the EC's recent raid (consumer goods), does not appear to be slowing down. Nevertheless, it is worth noting that dawn raids in the energy sector are on the rise (four dawn raids in the past four months), a not entirely surprising development, in particular, given current geopolitical turmoil.

Unusually, one of the two raids conducted by the Commission (fragrances) has been carried out ex-officio–reflecting a potential shift to a more pro-active approach amidst a reported drop in leniency applications.Also unusual was the fact that the raids were coordinated with the CMA, the Swiss WEKO and the US authorities—something that had not been seen in a while.

We provide more statistics below on the number of raids, the sectors impacted, including a country-by-country list, available through our Interactive Dawn Raid map.

Key Q1 2023 legal developments

EU Court of Justice annuls the inspection decisions of the European Commission in the French supermarkets case

In its judgments of March 9, 2023 the EU Court of Justice (CJEU) ruled that the European Commission (EC) had failed to fulfil its obligation to properly record the interviews that it conducted with suppliers when collecting information relating to its investigation. In the absence of valid evidence justifying the inspection, the CJEU ruled that the inspections were illegal, and annulled the EC's decision in its entirety.

Aligning its case law to that of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), the CJEU for the first time recognised that a company subject to a dawn raid should have an immediate right of appeal against any measure taken by the EC during a raid that substantially affects its interests.

Key takeaways

  • The EC has a duty to record interviews carried out in the context of an investigation—even if the interviews take place at a very early stage (in this case before the inspections) when the investigation has not yet been formally opened. The interviewees must also be in a position to confirm the contents of the interviews. Alternatively, the information derived from those interviews is inadmissible.

  • Companies targeted by an inspection should have the right to appeal the measures taken during a raid that substantially affects their interests, without having to wait for the EC's final decision. This alignment of EU law with the ECHR is a welcome improvement in due process rights for targeted companies.

Read our full alert

White & Case represented the appellant in one of three cases decided by the Court of Justice. Read our press release here.

The CJEU clarifies that all communications from EU external counsel to their clients are covered by legal professional privilege

The CJEU clarified the scope of the protection of legal professional privilege (LPP) in the EU, by finding that LPP is based not only on the right to a fair trial but also on the right to privacy. The CJEU recognised that LPP covers all communications between EEA-qualified external lawyers and their clients, and is not limited to advice given for the purposes of the client's rights of defence. In other words, it is also applicable to legal advice in general (e.g., compliance). This, again, is a welcome alignment with the case law of the ECHR.

Key takeaways

  • While EC inspectors have extensive investigative powers during dawn raids, they are not allowed to read, copy or seize documents that are covered by LPP. This judgment ensures that all legal advice (not only that given in relation to the rights of defence) —is subject to LPP.

  • Caution! Legal advice received from an in-house lawyer or from a non-EEA qualified lawyer is not covered by LPP.

Read our full alert

Spanish Supreme Court annuls dawn raid carried out without prior judicial authorization

In its judgment (Case n. 253/2023) of February 28, 2023 the Spanish Supreme Court ruled that the 2017 dawn raids carried out at Altadis's premises by the Spanish Competition Authority were unlawful, as it had not obtained prior judicial authorisation for the inspection. At the beginning of the inspection, the inspectors were asked whether they had a judicial authorisation to conduct the dawn raids, but they concealed this information by providing a confusing reply, saying that "there is no order refusing entry".  When Altadis found out that the inspectors had no actual authorisation, it challenged the validity of the inspection on the basis that the consent it had given was defective. The Supreme Court therefore upheld the Audiencia Nacional judgment of May 2021, which stated that any "consent obtained without having been provided with relevant information for taking a position on the consent being sought is void". Ultimately, the Supreme Court sided with Altadis, confirming that Altadis had not been provided with relevant information when it consented to the raid.

A look at the statistics

The information below has been sourced from LexisPSL, and is based on dawn raids that have been publicly announced by competition authorities. The LexisPSL information was supplemented from public sources in jurisdictions where further information was available. Since not all competition authorities announce every dawn raid, the data below likely underestimate the number of raids. The sector charts reflect dawn raids in which the sectors were identified by the competent authorities. In some jurisdictions (e.g., Germany), the authority publishes the number of raids without identifying the sector. As a result, the statistics in the charts below may underestimate the actual number of dawn raids by sector and country.

Dawn raids in the EEA and the UK, 2018 – 2023

Interactive Dawn Raid map

Hover over the highlighted countries to get a closer look at the enforcement activity of the respective National Competition Authorities.

Austria

2023

  • One dawn raid 
    • Sector: Refrigeration and freezing equipment 

2022

  • Three dawn raids
    • Sectors: Wood-pellets; waste management

2021

  • One dawn raid
    • Sectors: Waste management.

Belgium

2023

  • None reported

2022

  • Two dawn raids
    • Sectors: Bovine meat; Press publisher and distribution.

2021

  • None reported

Bulgaria

2023

  • One dawn raid
    • Sector: Food and beverage

2022

  • One dawn raid
    • Sectors: Toners and other printing consumables.

2021

  • None reported

Cyprus

2023

  • None reported

2022

  • One dawn raid
    • Sectors: Bricks

2021

  • None reported

Czech Republic

Estonia

  • No dawn raids for the period 2021 – 2023

France

2023

  • Four dawn raids
    • Sector: Rail transport; graphic cards; production and marketing of food and non-food product sectors; production and marketing of food and non-food products

2022

  • Four dawn raids
    • Sectors: Cow's milk; leather goods; agricultural supplies; cash register services for newsagents and tobacconists

2021

  • Two dawn raids
    • Sectors: Food retail; pharmacy data collection

Germany

2023

  • One dawn raid
    • Sector: Energy

2022

  • 12 dawn raids
    • Sectors: Power-cable manufacturer
    • As stated in the Bundeskartellamt (BKa) annual report of 2022, in 2022 the BKa carried out a total of 12 dawn raids and provided official assistance for another six

2021

  • Two dawn raids
    • As stated in the BKa annual report of 2021, in 2021 the BKa conducted two dawn raids

Greece

2023

  • Seven dawn raids
    • Sectors: Pharmaceuticals; alcoholic beverages; food processing; poultry; electricity grid; baby products; medical equipment

2022

  • 12 dawn raids
    • Sectors: Children's toys; aluminium; PVC and iron processing; import and distribution of white goods; transport; electricity; catering; medical products; 2 x construction; eyewear; cosmetics and personal care; breast pumps and accessories

2021

  • 13 dawn raids
    • Sectors: Sunflower; cotton and maize seeds; cadastral survey services; production and supply of pharmaceutical products; refining; wholesale and retail trade of petrol and diesel; 2x supply and retail trade of supermarket products; school bags; kids’ lunch bags and pencil cases; IT systems; catering services; public tenders for natural gas works; import; wholesale and retail markets of power-driven hard tools and garden tools; wholesale and retail markets of telecommunications and teleconferencing equipment; lighting systems

Hungary

2023

  • Three dawn raids
    • Sectors: Food and beverages; soft drinks;online accommodation booking

2022

  • None reported

2021

  • Two dawn raids
    • Sectors: Timber; gravel market

Italy

2023

  • Seven dawn raids
    • Sectors: Oil; electric recharging stations; organization of sporting competitions; automotive fuels; anti-lock breaking systems; organization of competitive motor sports events; wine glass bottles

2022

  • Two dawn raids
    • Sectors: Tolled motorways; catering services for penitential institutions

2021

  • None reported

Latvia

  • No dawn raids for the period 2021 – 2023

Lithuania

  • No dawn raids for the period 2021 – 2023

Netherlands

2023

  • None reported

2022

  • None reported

2021

  • One dawn raid
    •  Sectors: Food processing sector

Norway

2023

  • None reported

2022

  • Two dawn raids
    • Sectors: Finance; construction

2021

  • Two dawn raids
    •  Sectors: Pharmaceuticals; relocation services

Poland

2023

  • Four dawn raids
    • Sector: Agricultural machinery; processing and wholesale trade of raspberries; household applicances, grain storage

2022

  • Three dawn raids
    • Sectors: Gas meters; grain trade and shipments; coffee machines

2021

  • Five dawn raids
    • Sectors: Monitoring equipment; cleaning devices; hospital IT systems; KIA car dealerships; pork wholesale

Portugal

2023

  • None reported

2022

  • One dawn raid.
    • Sectors: Wood-chips

2021

  • Two dawn raids
    • Sectors: Procurement of military equipment; commercialised subscription databases with business information

Romania

2023

  • Four dawn raids
    • Sector: Console gaming; Sunflower oil, butter and sugar; voucher services related to employee benefits; banking

2022

  • One dawn raid
    • Sectors: Motor vehicles

2021

  • 12 dawn raids
    • Sectors: Telecommunications; direct oral anticoagulants; paints and decorative coatings; book distribution; archiving of documents; tenders for an electronic services project; poultry; electricity; labour protection equipment; retail of electronic products; technical site permit services; street signage
       

Slovakia

2023

  • Three dawn raid
    • Sector: Healthcare waste management; laboratory medical diagnostics; medicines and medical devices

2022

  • Four dawn raids
    • Sectors: IT; forestry; cables; sale and repair of robotised workplaces

2021

  • None reported

Slovenia

2023

  • None reported

2022

  • None reported

2021

  • One dawn raid
    • Sectors: Driver training
       

Spain

2023

  • Eight dawn raids
    • Sector: Travel agencies; haircare products; low-voltage electricity networks and electricity trading; agricultural machinery; rail transport; pharmaceutical digital logistics tool; electricity and gas; drugs and medications

2022

  • Four dawn raids
    • Sectors: Energy; food; security and surveillances services

2021

  • Two dawn raids
    • Sectors: Plastic and metal recycling; database marketing
       

Sweden

2023

  • None reported

2022

  • One dawn raid
    • Sectors: Bread

2021

  • Four dawn raids
    • Sectors: Waste management and treatment; plumbing products and installations; bread; PCR tests
       

Switzerland

2023

  • Three dawn raids
    • Sector: Fragrances; office equipment; steel products

2022

  • Two dawn raids
    • Sectors: Dermatological medication; road maintenance

2021

  • None reported

United Kingdom

2023

  • One dawn raid
    • Sector: Fragrances

2022

  • Three dawn raids
    • Sector: End-of-life vehicle manufacturing; immigration facilities; sports TV broadcasting 

2021

  • None reported 

EU

2023

  • Seven dawn raids
    • Sectors: Energy drinks; fragrances; fashion; synthetic turf manufacturing; medical devices for cardio-vascular applications; Chemical additives for cement and chemical admixtures for concrete and mortar; online ordering and delivery of food, groceries and other consumer goods

2022

  • Four dawn raids
    • Sectors: Fashion; online food delivery; water infrastructure; ELV vehicles

2021

  • Four dawn raids
    • Sectors: Defence; animal health; wood pulp; manufacturing and distribution of garments
Back to Map

Source: LexisPSL and publicly available data

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