Silke Heinz

Industries:

• aerospace,
• automotive
• broadcasting and media, including digital media
• chemical products
• consumer goods
• energy
• IT
• medical devices
• pharmaceutical
  products
• telecommunications

Ms. Heinz’s practice focuses on European and German competition law. She advises clients in relation to

• merger notifications
• horizontal cooperation and distribution, including joint ventures
• cartel cases, including leniency applications and settlements, and vertical infringements
• dominance
• compliance, internal investigations and training
• litigation, including on damages claims

She has expertise in various industries, including aerospace, automotive, broadcasting and media, including digital media, chemical products, consumer goods, energy, IT, medical devices, pharmaceutical products and telecommunications.

She also has experience in other EU regulatory matters, including privacy rules.

Ms. Heinz has been involved in a broad range of merger control proceedings with the European Commission and with the Federal Cartel Office in Germany, including second-phase proceedings, the negotiation of undertakings as well as referral cases to and from the European Commission. She recently represented clients in the GlaxoSmithKline/Novartis and Baxter Healthcare/Gambro merger cases. She is also experienced in worldwide multi-country merger filings.

Ms. Heinz has represented clients in litigation, notably with the Düsseldorf Court of Appeals, the German Federal State Court and the European Courts. For example, she represented Axel Springer in the litigation against the FCO’s merger prohibition of the acquisition of ProSieben/Sat.1. She was also involved in the preliminary ruling proceedings in the Pfleiderer case concerning access to file in cartel cases, and other civil litigation and arbitration cases involving antitrust claims, including defending Disney against claims of cinema operators.

Ms. Heinz further has in-depth experience with cartel proceedings with the European Commission and national authorities, including the coordination of multi-authority proceedings. She has carried out internal investigations, has assisted in dawn raids, submitted leniency applications and negotiated settlements with competition authorities. Ms. Heinz advised clients in EU cartel proceedings for example in the areas of bathroom fittings and fixtures (including subsequent appeal proceedings with the European Courts) detergents, the automotive sector, and in Germany for example in the decorative paper, consumer goods and beer cartel proceedings. She has also advised on damage claims.

In addition, Ms. Heinz is active in compliance, including establishing compliance concepts and providing
antitrust trainings.

The leading publication on German law firms, JUVE, lists Ms. Heinz among the category of “leading names in antitrust law”. German magazine Wirtschaftswoche has listed Ms. Heinz among the top antitrust lawyers (2011) and compliance lawyers (2019) in Germany. She is recognized as an expert for competition law in Who’s Who Legal 2017. She was among the winners of the Global Competition Review Antitrust Awards 2015 (matter of the year) as part of the team that represented GlaxoSmithKline in the GlaxoSmithKline/Novartis merger. She is named in the prestigious Global Competition Review’s list of “Women in Antitrust 2016” among the top 100 female private practitioners in the field.

Ms. Heinz received an LL.M. degree from the College of Europe in Bruges in 1997. She passed her second state law examination in the State of Hamburg in 2000 and the first state law examination at the University of Hamburg in 1996.  Ms. Heinz is a member of the Bar in Cologne. Her native language is German, and she is fluent in English and French. Prior to founding Heinz & Zagrosek, Ms. Heinz worked for Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, a leading American law firm, for more than 15 years, four of which she spent in Brussels.

Ms. Heinz is a member of the legal bar in Cologne.  She is a native German speaker and fluent in English and French.

Publications and speeches:

“Digital Markets Act (DMA) and the application of Art. 102 TFEU and Section 19a GWB”, participation in panel discussion at the International Forum on EU-Competition law of Studienvereinigung Kartellrecht e.V. in Brussels on 26.05.2023, together with Thomas Kramler, Dr. Romina Polley und Dr. Thorsten Mäger

Podszun (Ed.): Digital Markets Act: DMA,  Gesetz über digitale Märkte, Handkommentar, 2023 (in German – English version in preparation) Silke Heinz is author of chapters on Art. 5 Abs. 3, 4, 5, 7 und 8, Art. 6 Abs. 5 DMA.

“Alphabet/Google ist Anwendungsfall für neue Aufsicht über große Digitalkonzerne“, op ed, WuW 2022, 61 

Webinar “Digitalisierung und Kartellrecht – § 19a GWB und DMA“ of Studienvereinigung Kartellrecht e.V., participation in panel discussion at the virtual work session on 11.03.2021, together with Andreas Mundt, Silke Hossenfelder, Dr. Thorsten Mäger, Dr. Michael Dietrich and Dr. Kathrin Westermann (video of the work session is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9cKwIfRuFE, panel starts at min. 12.53.)

 

Webinar “10. GWB-Novelle (GWB-Digitalisierungsgesetz)“ of Studienvereinigung Kartellrecht e.V., participation in panel discussion on „Missbrauchsaufsicht und Digitalisierung“ on 05.10.2020, together with Dr. Thorsten Mäger, Annett Arlt and Dr. Katharina Westermann

“Blockchain-Kooperationen und Kartellrecht, u.a. im Bereich Supply Chain“, presentation (together with Dr. Thilo Reimers) at DICO Talk: Die Blockchain-Technologie – Herausforderungen aus Recht und Compliance für (Groß-)Unternehmen, Berlin, 30.10.2019

“Digitalisierungsallianzen, Blockchain-Konsortien und Kartellrecht“ (together with Lisa Bär), REthinking Law 2019, Volume 5, 44

“Wettbewerbspolitik für das digitale Zeitalter – der Expertenbericht der Europäischen Kommission“, WuW 2019, 439

“Kartellrecht und Verbandsarbeit, Überblick und jüngste Entwicklungen“, Speech at workshop by Lexis Nexis and Compliance Solutions on: Geschäftspartner- und Wettbewerberkontakte: Zwischen Kartellrecht, Verbandsarbeit und Digital Compliance, Stuttgart, 17.10.2019

“The (r)evolution of competition law in the digital era”, participation in panel at College of Europe Alumni in Competition (together with Aleksandra Boutin, Thomas Graf und Thomas Kramler), Brussels, 16.10.2019

“The German competition authority ends an abuse probe after an online market place agrees to changing business terms for dealers (Amazon)”, Bulletin e-competition, July 2019

“The Düsseldorf Court of Appeal quashes the Federal Cartel Office decision and finds a most favoured nation clause on a hotel booking platform to be compatible with antitrust law (booking.com)”, Bulletin e-competition, June 2019

“The German competition authority orders a social network company to stop collecting and matching data of its users without explicit consent as it constitutes an abuse of dominance (Facebook)”, Bulletin e-competition, February 2019

Individuals as a subject of investigation/procedure/fining in Germany”, 2018/1 CLPD (34)

“The German competition authority indicates in its preliminary assessment of a possible abuse of dominance case that data collection and use from third-party sources is abusive (Facebook)”, Bulletin e-competition, December 2017

“The German FCO Publishes Merger Remedies Guideline”, Bulletin e-competition, May 2017

“The German Federal State Council approves reform of the national competition law”, Bulletin e-competition, March 2017

“The German Federal Cartel Office publishes a draft notice on resale price maintenance in the food retail sector”, Bulletin e-competition, January 2017

“The German Federal Cartel Office terminates antitrust proceedings against a toy manufacturer (Lego)”, Bulletin e-competition, July 2016

“The Frankfurt Court of Appeals submits preliminary reference on how to treat bans on sales via third-party internet platforms in selective distribution systems (Coty)”, Bulletin e-competition, April 2016

“Online Booking Platforms and EU Competition Law in the Wake of the German Bundeskartellamt’s Booking.com Infringement Decision”,  Journal of European Competition Law & Practice, 2016, Vol. 7, No. 8

“The German Competition Authority publishes a discussion paper on internet platforms in merger control, contractual restrictions of competition and abuse of dominance scenarios”, Bulletin e-competition, October 2015

“Chapter on Germany” (co-author: Anna Rolova), The Public Competition Enforcement Review, 6th edition, Law Business Research Ltd., London, 2014

“Bundeskartellamt bewahrt sich Flexibilität in Bußgeldverfahren“ in RECHT UND KAPITALMARKT, Börsen-Zeitung, January 2014

“The German Competition Authority publishes note on settlements in national antitrust proceedings”, Bulletin e-competition, December 2013

“The German Competition Authority publishes its reviewed guidelines for the setting of fines deviating from the methodology used by the European Commission”, Bulletin e-competition, June 2013

Roundtable debate “The Interaction Between Member States and the Commission: What is New With the ECN?”, IBC’s Cartel Risks and Compliance Conference, March 2013

“Chapter on Germany” (co-author: Anna Rolova), The Public Competition Enforcement Review, 5th edition, Law Business Research Ltd., London, 2013

“German Competition Law Issues”, Munich Competition Law Forum, February 2013

Panel presentation “Praktische Erfahrungen im Umgang mit der Kronzeugenregelung (Bundeskartellamt)“,
Studienvereinigung Kartellrecht, Regionalgruppe Rheinland, January 2012

“The District Court of Bonn denies access to leniency applications for third parties in cartel case (Pfleiderer)”, Bulletin e-competition, January 2012

“Settlements bei der Europäischen Kommission und beim Bundeskartellamt – ein Praxisvergleich“ (co- author: Romina Polley) in WuW, January 2012

“Chapter on Germany” (co-author: Anna Rolova), The Public Competition Enforcement Review, 4th edition, Law Business Research Ltd., London 2012

“Spanisches Kartellrecht” (co-author: Konstantin Joergens), Frankfurter Kommentar, status October 2011

“The German FCO allows installment payment of cartel fine in mills case (VK Mühlen AG)”, Bulletin e- competition, October 2011

“The German Bundeskartellamt fines an undertaking operating in the metal recycling market for having implemented a concentration without merger approval (Interseroh)”, Bulletin e-competition, May 2011

“The German Bundeskartellamt investigates settlement of a tender dispute for suspect cartel infringement under s. 1 ARC/Art. 101 TFEU (Abellio/DB Regio NRW)”, Bulletin e-competition, February 2011

“The German Bundeskartellamt imposes fines against three manufacturers of fire-fighting vehicles and an independent accountant for infringement of German cartel law (fire-fighting vehicles cartel)”, Bulletin e-competition, February 2011

“Chapter on Germany” (co-author: Anna Rolova), The Public Competition Enforcement Review, 3rd edition, Law Business Research Ltd., London, 2011

“Chapter 1 – Application of Article 101 TFEU” in: Siragusa/Rizza (eds.), EU Competition Law, Volume III, 2nd edition 2011, Claeys & Casteels

“The Düsseldorf Court of Appeals overturns a Bundeskartellamt merger prohibition addressing the issue of future potential competition’s test under German law (Neue Pressegesellschaft, Zeitungsverlag Schwäbisch Hall)” Bulletin e-competition, December 2010

“The German Federal Court of Justice limits judicial review of merger clearances subject to commitments (EDEKA/Plus)”, Bulletin e-competition, October 2010

“The Düsseldorf Court of Appeals questions the German Federal Cartel Office’s decision imposing the obligation to grant access to essential facilities in the ferry services in interim proceedings (Fährhafen Puttgarden II)”, Bulletin e-competition, June 2010

“The German Federal Court of Justice reverses the Düsseldorf Court of Appeal’s decision ruling in favor of a merger in the hearing aids sector and addressing the issue of collective dominance test under German law (Phonak, GN ReSound)”, Bulletin e-competition, April 2010

“Kluwer Competition Law Blog”, https://www.kluwercompetitionlawblog.com (ongoing), 2010

“Chapter on Germany” The Public Competition Enforcement Review – London, 2009

“Requests for leniency in the EU: Experience and legal puzzles” (co-author: Dirk Schroeder), in Criminalization of Competition Law Enforcement: Economic and Legal Implications for the EU Member States, Cheltenham Glos (Ed: K.J. Cseres, M.P. Schinkel, F.O.W. Vogelaar), 2006