INTRODUCTION Contributed by: Jean-François Bellis and Porter Elliott, Van Bael & Bellis
as a deal that is not time-sensitive. In every transac - tion, there is a sense of urgency and a desire to close as soon as possible, ideally the day before yesterday. This urgency needs to be reconciled with the fact that, with some notable exceptions, most merger control jurisdictions require closing to be suspended until regulatory approval has been granted. Taking into account the time needed to prepare the filing(s), which in challenging cases can easily be hundreds of pages long (excluding annexes) in certain jurisdictions, the time spent in “pre-notification consultations” with the relevant authorities before formal filing occurs, and the time it takes for the review process(es) to play out, closing can easily be delayed for a couple of months in simple cases, or for well over a year in more chal - lenging ones. Reasonable timelines need to be set for the parties, and expectations must be managed carefully. Once again, every jurisdiction has its own procedural rules and deadlines, so co-ordinating the reviews across the world can be a significant challenge. This applies even more so where remedies are required in order to obtain approval in one or more jurisdictions. Conclusion For the above reasons (and many more), navigating a global merger control filing and approval process is a complex business, and it is getting more com - plex every year. The Chambers Merger Control 2026 guide aims to cut through some of that complexity by providing the reader with a practical guide, in a user-friendly format, that covers many of the world’s leading merger control jurisdictions.
The sections in this guide cover the key rules relevant for a merger control filing assessment, including: • the kinds of transactions that have to be notified (or are subject to review); • what the filing thresholds are; • the procedure and timeline for notification and approval; • the substantive considerations of the authorities; and • what kind of enforcement record the authorities have. However, the chapters also go beyond the letter of the law and provide useful information on how these rules are applied in practice. For instance, the sec - tions on applicable fines for failure to file cover not only whether such penalties exist and what their legal maximum is, but, more importantly, whether these penalties are applied in practice and what penalties have been imposed recently. Although by no means a substitute for seeking advice from experienced merger control counsel, this guide provides clear and practical answers to most of the fundamental questions faced by any company involved in a transaction that requires merger control filings (while also addressing foreign direct invest - ment and foreign subsidies filings and approvals). The reader will find this guide to be a very useful tool for navigating their way through the increasingly complex labyrinth of global merger control. As always, this work is the result of a collective effort. We extend our sincere thanks to all the authors for their contributions and to the Chambers team for their continued diligence and professionalism.
9 CHAMBERS.COM
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