Van Bael & Bellis successfully assists ACT in its intervention in support of Intel’s challenge to EU Commission abuse of dominance decision set aside by the General Court
- 26/01/2022
- News
In a judgment issued today, the General Court of the European Union has annulled the part of the EU Commission’s decision of 13 May 2009 finding that rebates granted to Intel’s major OEM customers infringed Article 102 TFEU. The Court also annulled the fine of € 1.06 billion imposed on Intel.
The appeal lodged by Intel against that decision had been dismissed by the General Court in a judgment of 12 June 2014. In a landmark judgment issued on 6 September 2017, the Court of Justice decided to set aside the General Court judgment and to refer the case back to the General Court with instruction to examine the evidence put forward by the Commission to establish the capability of the rebates at issue to restrict competition.
The judgment issued today by the General Court sets aside the part of the Commission decision finding the rebates at issue as abusive within the meaning of Article 102 TFEU and annuls the fine of € 1.06 billion imposed on Intel.
Throughout the successive proceedings before the General Court and the Court of Justice, Van Bael & Bellis has assisted the Association for Competitive Technology (ACT), a trade association representing more than 5,000 IT firms worldwide, in its intervention in support of Intel’s challenge to the Commission’s 2009 decision.
ACT was represented in this matter by Van Bael & Bellis partners Jean-François Bellis, Kris Van Hove and Tim Kasten. Further details on the case can be found on the EU Court of Justice’s website.
