Judicial criticism of the quality of regulatory decisions and the enforcement processes of key regulators is prompting changes to regulatory procedure and policy.
In July, the European Court of First Instance (CFI) annulled the European Commission’s (EC’s) decision to permit a joint venture between Sony and Bertels-mann, the first occasion that a Commission merger clearance decision has been annulled. This was a real challenge to the EC’s decision-making process following its overhaul as a result of a series of setbacks in 2002, when three high-profile merger prohibition decisions were annulled.
