Region: Australia

Australia’s antitrust authority has accused a waste management company and its chief executive of criminally conspiring to fix the price of demolition waste services in Sydney, following a guilty plea from its alleged co-conspirator.

19 December 2022

Australia’s competition watchdog has raised concerns about the purchase of an independent alcohol shop by a major drinks retailer in a small northern town, as the agency continues to prioritise reviews of “creeping acquisitions” despite criticism it is wasting its resources.

13 December 2022

Featured in GCR 100 2023

A new era has arrived for Australia’s competition regime and its lawyers now that Rod Sims has stepped down as chair of the country’s antitrust authority and been replaced by former Gilbert + Tobin partner Gina Cass-Gottlieb.

12 December 2022

An Australian court has found that the country’s largest steelmaker attempted to induce nine businesses to enter into a cartel to fix the price of flat steel products.

09 December 2022

Featured in Foreign Direct Investment Regulation Guide - Second Edition

In recent years, the regulation of foreign investments under national security and foreign investment regimes has grown exponentially, with sectoral coverage expanding to unprecedented levels.

06 December 2022

Featured in Foreign Direct Investment Regulation Guide - Second Edition

As one of the first industries in which foreign direct investment (FDI) occurred on a large scale globally, the energy sector has also been one of the first in which legislative measures were introduced to regulate FDI.

06 December 2022

A medical device maker’s proposed acquisition of a hearing implants business may harm competition and reduce innovation incentives for devices used to treat advanced hearing loss, Australia’s competition watchdog has said.

01 December 2022

An Australian court has sentenced a former manager at an active pharmaceutical ingredient producer to almost three years in jail for his role in a criminal cartel, although he will not actually see the inside of a cell.

29 November 2022

Australia’s treasurer has said the country needs to be more “assertive” in encouraging foreign investment in critical mineral markets that aligns with its long-term national interest, as the government signals closer scrutiny of approval applications in that sector.

28 November 2022

Australia’s competition watchdog has allowed three major supermarket chains to form a recycling “taskforce”, granting their urgent request to cooperate following the suspension of the country’s only return-to-store plastics programme.

25 November 2022