Competition & Consumer

Our team have been involved in a number of decisions that have established fresh precedents.  We  are commercial in our approach, recognising the reality of doing business and seeking to provide pragmatic advice and solutions within the bounds of the law.

Our work includes preparing applications for clearance and authorisation for mergers and acquisitions; preparing submissions and participation in Commerce Commission conferences opposing applications for clearance and authorization; acting on appeals to the High Court against Commerce Commission decisions and appearing on behalf of clients in Commerce Act pecuniary penalty actions and Commerce Commission Fair Trading Act investigations and prosecutions.

We also provide advice on a range of restrictive trade practices, including exclusive dealing, predatory pricing, price‑fixing and resale price maintenance.

Our experts are frequently called upon to preparing applications for authorisation of restrictive trade practices. We review advertising and promotional material for television, radio and print media to ensure compliance with the Fair Trading Act, in particular to assess possible misleading and deceptive conduct and false and misleading representations.

We also regularly assist our clients in risk management by delivering comprehensive trade practice compliance and training programmes across a range of industries.

The team regularly present to competition law conferences and are members of the Competition Law and Policy Institute of New Zealand.