Competition/European Law
Europe Guide 2024 : Italy
Band 3
About
Provided by Legance
The team has a strong expertise in mergers (at EU and national level) handling notification processes before the EU Commission and the Italian Competition Authority (ICA).
The team has extensive experience in the field of investigations before the ICA in relation to cartels and abuse of dominance.
In the area of unfair commercial practices and advertising, the team supports clients in civil disputes and disputes before the Italian Advertising Self-Regulation Institute, as well as the review of advertising, claims and in relation to consumer protection. The expertise also includes counselling on distribution agreements and antitrust compliance programmes.
In collaboration with other departments, the group assists clients in stand-alone and follow-on civil litigation.
The advice covers a variety of industries including regulatory matters in the energy, transport and telecommunications sectors.
Chambers Review
Legance has recently expanded its competition law team with the hiring of Pietro Merlino. The law firm is active on a number of behavioural matters, representing clients in investigations into possible cartels or abuses of dominance. The team is also strong in merger clearance mandates, including advising clients on contested clearances. It has further experience in competition compliance matters involving vertical restraints and distribution agreements.
Work Highlights
- Legance assisted ExxonMobil with the phase II investigation into the acquisition of its refinery and wholesale business by Italiana Petroli.
Strengths
Provided by Chambers
"The feedback is always spot-on and comprehensive."
"There is an excellent antitrust department there."
"I find the team fast and able to speak the same language as our business. The lawyers are very business-oriented and they go above and beyond."
"The quality is great."
"The feedback is always spot-on and comprehensive."
"There is an excellent antitrust department there."
"I find the team fast and able to speak the same language as our business. The lawyers are very business-oriented and they go above and beyond."
"The quality is great."
Notable Practitioners
Vito Auricchio assists clients from the energy sector with merger clearance filings and investigations into allegations of unfair commercial practices. He also has experience in high-profile contested merger filings.
"Vito Auricchio is able to combine a profound knowledge of competition law with a strong economic background, which makes his support particularly valuable when dealing with complex mergers."
"He is very responsive and willing to provide guidance even in difficult or unclear circumstances."
"We don't have to think twice about recommending him; it is a really good service."
"He is very business-oriented, very available to talk and tries to understand our needs and point of view."
"He is very involved himself in the transaction and this is appreciated by the client."
Pietro Merlino joined Legance in November 2023. He has a broad practice covering merger clearance filings, investigations into potentially anti-competitive agreements and appeals against fines. He has notable experience advising private equity clients.
"He is very smart - he learns and understands the whole picture in a holistic manner and in a very short time."
"Pietro Merlino is very attentive to customer needs, with a great ability to find solutions and to solve complex issues."