Jones Day fields a diverse EU and competition law practice which encompasses merger control, state aid, and antitrust investigations and litigation at the national and EU levels, with particularly significant experience in handling cases before the European courts. Leading French-based multinationals make up a key proportion of the team's client base, and it has notable strength in highly regulated sectors such as energy, pharmaceuticals, telecoms, banking and technology. Eric Barbier de la Serre is well regarded for his expertise in antitrust and state aid cases, particularly before the EU courts. Charlotte Breuvart (who is based in Brussels) and Eileen Lagathu are also noted.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • ‘Jones Day has in-depth expertise in our field, and a flexible, pragmatic team capable of adapting to changes in the issues we were faced with.’

  • ‘We worked mainly with Eric Barbier de la Serre. In addition to his excellent expertise and knowledge of the field of European and competition law, we particularly appreciated his ability to listen to and understand the very specific issues that we were facing and, consequently, the quality and relevance of the deliverables received from Jones Day. We highly recommend him.’

  • ‘The team is extremely professional, available and very attentive. Their fields of activity are vast and make it possible to respond to various requests.’

  • 'The team is very competent and professional, and always attentive to the client's requirements.'

Key clients

  • EDF
  • Swile
  • Suez
  • Noven
  • Sanofi
  • Ligue Nationale de Rugby
  • Teréga
  • IFPEN
  • ENEDIS
  • Orange
  • Crédit Agricole Consumer Finance

Work highlights

  • Advised EDF on successfully securing the complete dismissal of a complaint by the French Association of Energy Retailers (ANODE) before the FCA.
  • Representing Biocom, a major life sciences advocacy organization, in the seminal Illumina/Grail case before the EU Court of Justice, which raises major questions of principle concerning the European Commission’s jurisdiction to review concentrations that are not reportable at EU or national level.
  • Advised Swile, a worktech unicorn, on the antitrust aspects of the acquisition of Bimpli, a subsidiary of Groupe BPCE and leader in employee services and benefits in France.

Lawyers

Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.

Practice head

The lawyer(s) leading their teams.

Eric Barbier de la Serre

Other key lawyers

Eileen Lagathu, Charlotte Breuvart