Heraeus Kulzer antitrust investigation by German FCO closes without charges
Client(s) Heraeus Holding Gmbh
Jones Day successfully represented Heraeus Kulzer GmbH (HKG) in an antitrust investigation by the German Federal Cartel Office. The investigation was triggered by a complaint by Biomet, Heraeus' sole distributor in Europe of the pharmaceutical product Septopal©. Based on Article 82 of the EC Treaty and the corresponding provisions of German antitrust law, Biomet alleged that HKG monopolized the relevant market and abused its dominant position by significantly increasing its prices for Septopal© within a short period of time. The Office did not follow those arguments and stopped the proceedings after a six-month investigation.