Ronit Kreisberger will be speaking at a ‘Competition Law as a threat to innovation’ seminar today.

The seminar will discuss the issues raised by recent cases in Europe and further afield, as well as other changes to the UK competition regime.

Details of the event are as follows:

Date: Thursday 1 May 2014

Time: 5:30pm, for a 6pm start, finish at 7:15pm followed by a drinks reception

Venue: Pinsent Masons, 30 Crown Place, London EC2A 4ES

The following speakers are now confirmed for this event:

• The Rt. Hon. Professor Sir Robin Jacob, UCL
• Dr Mike Walker, Chief Economic Adviser, Competition and Markets Authority
• Dr Helen Jenkins, Managing Director, Oxera
• Ronit Kreisberger, Barrister, Monckton Chambers
• Jenny Block, Partner, EU & Competition Group, Pinsent Masons LLP

To read coverage of this event, please click here.

Paul Harris QC joins a panel of industry experts at The Sports Industry: Challenges to Success conference today. The panel will share their opinions on the challenges currently facing those within sport.

Paul’s talk is entitled ‘Disputes: Obtaining the Most Effective Outcome.’

Details of the event are as follows:

29 April 2014
9.30am – Registration and refreshments
3.30pm finish – Drinks and networking
Brabners, 55 King Street, Manchester M2 4LQ

The conference is aimed at Chairs, Chief Executives, Chief Operating Officers, Directors of Finance and Operations, in-house lawyers and senior personnel involved in the management of your organisation.

To book your free place please email events@brabners.com. If you have any queries regarding the conference please contact Deborah Ascott-Jones on daj@brabners.com or 0161 836 8899.

Michael Bowsher QC of Monckton Chambers will be speaking at the NHS Commissioning and Procurement: Securing Sustainable Change event.

Michael will be giving a talk on “The Challenge of Commissioning Health Care in the New UK and EU Regimes: How has the new NHS system worked so far, and what will the new EU Procurement Directives do the process?”

Details of the event are as follows:

29 April 2014
8:30 am – 5:00 pm
Barbican Centre, London

Join us for a topical review of recent legal developments in the healthcare sector. Experts from Monckton Chambers will consider the following issues:

Judicial Review of Hospital Closures

• Lessons from Lewisham
• The end of the road at Enfield
• The Care Bill 2014: the hospital closure clause

Robert Palmer

Cashback? – damages claims for competition law breaches
Ben Rayment
Healthcare procurement – the new landscape

• The new Directives and the “light touch” regime
• MONITOR – a UK procurement regulator
• Competition v co-operation – where are we now?

Rob Williams

Healthcare & VAT

• Introduction and recent developments
• Scope of the healthcare exemptions

George Peretz

 

Details of the seminar are as follows:

30 April 2014
6pm Registration FOR 6.30pm start | 1.5 CPD
Goldsmiths Centre, 42 Britton Street, London EC1M 5AD

Please see below a map of directions to the venue. The nearest station is Farringdon, but it is also within easy walking distance of Chancery Lane, Barbican and Old Street stations;

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/The+Goldsmiths’+Centre/@51.520951,-0.103278,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x20c585020275ab6b

We are aware the tube strike may affect your journey. Please see below a link to the tfl website which provides the most up to date information on disruptions;

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tube-dlr-overground/status/#

 

How to register:
Our seminars are free to attend. To ensure your place, please RSVP to Jessica Lines
jlines@monckton.com or call 020 7468 6330.

The International Automobile Federation (FIA) has today rejected an appeal made by Infiniti Red Bull Racing to reinstate Daniel Ricciardo’s second place finish in this year’s Australian Grand Prix. Ricciardo’s career best finish was rescinded 5 hours after the race had ended when the FIA found his car to be in breach of Formula 1’s newly implemented fuel regulations. The result means the 18 point deduction on Ricciardo’s podium finish is maintained, leaving the driver currently in tenth place in the Driver’s Championship instead of a possible third.

Paul Harris QC, who acted on behalf of Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 in support of the FIA, described the actions of Red Bull as “a flagrant and deliberate disregard for the rules.”

The case has been featured in the following press:

• BBC
• Sky Sports
• The Telegraph
• ESPN

Ronit Kreisberger will be speaking at the BIICL Competition Law Forum on 14^th April 2014, regarding Pay for Delay.

Ronit joins a panel of experts for a discussion on topical issues including:

1. Object theories of harm and the counterfactual

2. “Straw man” theories of harm

3. The realities of patent litigation and the EC’s analysis of settlements.

4. Implications for consumers (benefits of innovation v low prices, generics’ incentives to litigate)

5. Fines and policy considerations.

The discussion is followed by a reception at the British Institute of International and Comparative Law.

We are delighted to announce that Monckton has been shortlisted in the Tax Chambers of the Year category at the LexisNexis Taxation Awards.

The awards ceremony is being held on 22^nd May at the London Hilton Park Lane.

For more information on the LexisNexis Taxation Awards, please click here.

At a hearing in the Administrative Court on 3 April 2014 Mr Justice Charles granted permission for two German companies, Ordanduu GmbH and Optimus Mobile GmbH, to bring judicial review proceedings against the UK regulator for premium rate telephone services, PhonepayPlus.

The claim arises out of a series of “Emergency Procedure” investigations instigated by PhonepayPlus in July 2013 under paragraph 4.5 of its Code of Practice.  The investigations followed identification by PhonepayPlus of a website using a form of malware to lock consumers’ internet browsers in an attempt to direct them to a number of online services and generate affiliate advertising revenue.  The investigations resulted in financial penalties and other sanctions being imposed on a number of companies, including several located in other EU Member States.

The Claimants are challenging PhonepayPlus’s actions as contrary to EU law.  The Judge also gave the Claimants permission to raise English public law grounds in their claim, having observed that PhonepayPlus’s actions against the Claimants were arguably unfair as a matter of public law.  The Claimants are also claiming damages for breach of their EU law rights.  The case is now expected to proceed to a substantive hearing.

Gerry Facenna, instructed by Hamlins LLP, acts for the Claimants, Ordanduu GmbH and Optimus Mobile GmbH.  Tim Ward QC, instructed by Bates Wells Braithwaite LLP, acts for the Defendant, PhonepayPlus.

Frank Mitchell of Monckton Chambers has had an article published in the latest edition of the Tax Journal.

In the article, Frank analyses five recent judgments from the CJEU which consider the impact of fiscal neutrality.

Michael Bowsher QC will be speaking at the Criminal Bar Association EU Seminar on 8th April.

The seminar, entitled ‘The Impact of EU Law upon Criminal Law: Opportunities for all’ will be held at The Old Bailey, from 17.15 – 18.15.

To secure your place email aaron.dolan@criminalbar.com

For more information, please click here.