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Antitrust, Competition and Trade Law Firm in Austria

WE COVER EVERY AREA OF ANTITRUST, COMPETITION AND TRADE LAW – INTERNATIONALLY AND IN THE AUSTRIAN MARKET

The CMS Antitrust, Competition and Trade (ACT) group in Austria is part of the fully integrated global CMS group, one of the largest specialist competition and trade teams in the world. More than 225 CMS experts advise clients in more than 40 countries worldwide on all ACT matters. The Austrian team is based in Vienna.

Due to our size and wide footprint, we are able to deal with all ACT matters irrespective of their geographical dimension. Where necessary we cooperate with long established contacts from our wider network of law firms everywhere in the world.

We are specialists across the full range of Antitrust, Competition and Trade matters. In the last three years alone, our group has advised clients in more than 750 competition and trade related proceedings. We have expert sub-groups specialising in specific areas within the wider competition and trade field, e.g. for State aid and FDI/Foreign investment screening. We are also well-known as experts in various sectors of the economy. Our renowned sector specialisation encompasses automotive, consumer products/FMCG, construction, digital economy, energy & climate change, life sciences, telecommunications/media and transport to name but a few. 

Our clients range from many large multinationals who frequently use our team as their ACT law firm of choice for the entire region (e.g., in Europe or CEE), to governments at all levels and also a high number of medium-sized companies. We also advise Austrian brand owners and leading market players, as well as supranational organizations, federal and local governmental entities (including in competition law training programmes for jurisdictions with nascent competition laws). We represent our clients before Austrian authorities, including the Federal Competition Authority, the Federal Cartel Prosecutor, and the Austrian Federal Ministry of Labour and Economic Affairs (for FDI screening matters), the Austrian courts (in particular the Cartel Court) and in proceedings before the European Commission and the European Court of Justice. Furthermore, we assist our clients on ACT matters worldwide.

We use the most up-to-date technical and AI tools to support our business. 

We hold a renowned annual EU competition law conference which has become a feature in the Brussels calendar. We put out regular case law updates on Austrian, EU and international competition and trade developments on our Law Now service. Our monthly EU law webinars are attended by in house counsel from around the world.  

We cover every area of Antitrust, Competition and Trade law:

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Competition and Cartel Investigation
Competition and cartel investigations
The risks of investigations and fines for anti-competitive behaviour is on the rise. We defend our clients in cartel and other regulatory investigatio
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Merger Control
We have a long and extensive track record of advising clients on merger control requirements and representing them in merger control proceedings befor
Foreign investment screening
We frequently represent our clients in foreign investment screening matters in Austria. Additionally, our broad footprint with CMS offices in Europe,
Vertical agreements
We give clients confidence in their relationships with suppliers, resellers, franchisees and customers, online and offline. By reviewing their distrib
Horizontal agreements
The line between admissible conduct and infringement can be thin. Our specialists’ expertise covers the full range of horizontal cooperation or
abuse of dominance
Abuse of dominance and economic dependence
The competitive conduct of companies with a strong market position is subject to increasing scrutiny and may lead to unwanted regulatory intervention,
Unfair trading
Unfair trading practices (UTP)
We are at the forefront of advising clients in the field of unfair trading practices, which is a relatively new field of law in many countries. Whethe
Compliance
We provide day to day advice in all antitrust and competition law matters to help clients avoid any conflicts with antitrust and competition laws. We
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Private enforcement
The CMS team acts for claimants, defendants and interveners in all competition-related private enforcement matters, including proceedings for the disc
State aid
State aid is a constantly developing field of law. The EU and its Member States and many other governments outside the EU have introduced or are about
Foreign subsidies control
The EU will extend State aid control to the support of businesses provided by non-EU governments. We help companies to prepare for the upcoming new re
Trade law and sanctions
In an increasingly challenging international business world, we help companies to remain compliant and keep supply chains moving. With export control
EU flags
General EU law, free movement of goods, services and capital
With our highly specialised expertise in general European law, we help companies defend their commercial interests in all matters of general EU law, i
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Digital markets
CMS is widely recognised as a leader in providing legal advice to clients from the digital and technology markets. We help companies avoid regulatory
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Regulatory
Companies in regulated industries are under constant scrutiny over anti-competitive behaviour. With our in-depth sector specific competition law exper

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15/03/2024
CMS advises Sfakianakis Group on the acquisition of Ajar Car Rental
Press release - 15 March 2024 CMS Austria has advised the Greek Sfakianakis Group on the acquisition of Ajar Car Rental GmbH from the Saudi Arabian Al Jomaih Group, providing comprehensive legal advice on the project. Ajar Car Rental GmbH is the master franchisee of Enterprise, National, and Alamo in Austria, serving rent-a-car customers across the country. During the acquisition, the CMS Austria team provided significant support and advice on all areas of the transaction, including due diligence, employment, regulatory compliance, intellectual property, banking and finance, data protection and competition. Alexander Rakosi (Partner, Corporate/M&A) led the CMS core transaction team, which further consisted of Christoph Birner (Associate, Corporate/M&A) and Thomas Liegl (Associate, Corporate/M&A). Alexander Rakosi comments: “We are very pleased to have successfully supported the Sfakianakis Group on its market entry into Austria and to have contributed to our client's continued growth in the automotive industry."The CMS due diligence team included Rebecca Herlitz (Associate, Corporate/M&A), Mariella Kapoun (Partner, Real Estate), Hans Lederer (Partner, Intellectual Property), Andreas Lichtenberger (At­tor­ney-at-Law, Data Protection), Caroline Pavitsits (Associate, Employment), Kai Ruckelshausen (Partner, Banking & Finance), Sheldon Sookdeo (Associate, Banking & Finance), Maximilian Uidl (Associate, Real Estate), Marlene Wim­mer-Nistel­ber­ger (Partner, Regulatory), Jens Winter (Partner, Employment) and Dieter Zandler (Partner, Competition), as well as legal trainees Roman Namestek, Ferdinand Sima and Mattias Torggler. PHH Rechtsanwälte, led by Rainer Kaspar and Philip Rosenauer, provided legal support to Al Jomaih. About Sfakianakis Group Founded in 1958, Sfakianakis Group is one of the leading diversified business groups in Greece, with a core focus on the Automotive, Industrial and Consumer Retail sectors. Headquartered in Athens, Greece, the Group is 100% family owned and employs over 1,500 individuals across 14 countries in Europe. Within the Automotive sector, the Group operates one of the largest automotive retail businesses in the region, the distribution businesses of BYD and Suzuki, a leading long-term leasing business (Executive Lease), and a rapidly growing Rent-A-Car business as the Master Franchisee of En­ter­prise-Na­tion­al-Alamo in 14 countries.
12/03/2024
After EU Commission's first decision on Carbon Contracts for Difference,...
The European Commission approved the first Carbon Contracts for Difference (CCfD) scheme under the new Guidelines on State aid for climate, environmental protection and energy 2022 (CEEAG).Fol­low­ing the...
07/03/2024
Practical guidance on how to assess the existence of aid for risk financing...
On 26 January 2024, the Commission adopted practical guidance for Member States on assessing the existence of State aid for measures aimed at facilitating access to financing for certain busi­nesses.Risk...
05/03/2024
European Commission authorises EUR 550 million Italian hydrogen aid scheme
On 30 January 2024, the European Commission authorised an Italian hydrogen aid scheme with a budget of EUR 550 million under the Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework.The Green Deal industrial planThe...
22/01/2024
State aid: The European Commission approves an Italian aid scheme for the...
On 15 January 2024, the European Commission approved a EUR 120 mil­lion Italian aid scheme for all airlines establishing new connections between one of the three airports in Calabria, namely Tito Minniti...
27/11/2023
State aid: Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework extended
The European Commission has adjusted the timetable for phasing out the provisions of the State aid Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework after sending Member States this proposal for partial adjustment...
24/10/2023
The Dominance and Monopolies Review 11 | Austria
Eleventh Edition
18/10/2023
State aid: The Court of Justice of the EU annuls the judgment of the General...
The European Commission's decision of 31 July 2017  On 7 April 2017, Germany notified the Commission of its plan to grant operating aid to Frankfurt-Hahn airport to cover the deficit of its operator...
10/07/2023
In-depth investigation by the European Commission into Danish and Swedish...
In August 2020, Denmark and Sweden notified the European Commission of their plans to provide support in the form of recapitalisation measures for the airline SAS.As a result of pandemic-related travel...
26/06/2023
Revised guidance on the application of EU State aid rules in the UK post-Brexit
On 9 June 2023, the European Commission (“EC”) adopted a revised Notice on the application of the EU State aid rules to the UK following the end of the Brexit transition period.  On the same day...
01/06/2023
State aid: following appeals by Ryanair, the General Court of the EU annuls...
On 11 May 2023, the General Court of the EU cancelled two European Commission decisions authorizing State aid in the form of capital injections for the airlines SAS and Deutsche Lufthansa, in particular...
18/05/2023
European Commission's public consultation on the extension of operating...
The European Commission has recently submitted for public consultation its draft communication extending the transitional period for operating aid that can be granted to regional airports under the 2014...