EU Court Ruling Says EC Infringed UPS's Right of Defense
March 07 2017 - 5:09AM
Dow Jones News
By Natalia Drozdiak
BRUSSELS--The European Union's second-highest court on Tuesday
annulled a 2013 decision by the bloc's antitrust watchdog to block
United Parcel Service Inc.'s (UPS) $7 billion bid for Dutch
parcel-delivery company TNT Express NV on the basis of procedural
missteps by the regulator.
The general court of the EU said the European Commission had
made "non-negligible changes" to the economic analyses previously
discussed with UPS but didn't communicate its final econometric
analysis model to the company before adopting its decision.
After UPS called off its merger, logistics rival FedEx (FDX)
stepped into the gap to acquire Netherlands-based TNT Express in
May 2016 for 4.4 billion euros ($4.7 billion), expanding its reach
in Europe.
The court said in a statement: "By failing to do so, the
commission infringed UPS' rights of defense."
It is unusual for the bloc's top courts to overturn decisions by
the bloc's executive, the European Commission. However, in
antitrust cases, the court generally overturns commission decisions
primarily on the basis of procedural irregularities.
The commission can appeal the decision to the bloc's highest
court, the Court of Justice.
Write to Natalia Drozdiak at natalia.drozdiak@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 07, 2017 04:54 ET (09:54 GMT)
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