Overview

The decision of the Court of Justice of the EU in the AM&S case in 1980 is arguably one of the most controversial EU competition law decisions the court has ever made. The court limited the benefit of legal professional privilege in EU competition investigations to communications between firms and external, EU-qualified, lawyers, giving the European Commission the power to order disclosure of communications between firms under investigation and their in-house and non-EU qualified lawyers.

After nearly three decades, the court has been asked to reconsider this decision. In February this year, the court’s Grand Chamber of 13 judges heard an appeal by Akzo Nobel against a decision of the court of first instance (now the general court) upholding a Commission decision, requiring Akzo to disclose advice given to it by a Dutch in-house lawyer.

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