S&C’s history of working effectively with government authorities to resolve complex matters and our ability to handle cases with impacts in multiple jurisdictions make us an ideal choice for clients facing criminal antitrust investigations. With more than a dozen former federal and state prosecutors, as well as lawyers with long experience dealing with prosecutors, our team understands how government authorities pursue criminal antitrust cases. We also stay abreast of shifts in enforcement priorities.
We regularly advise clients at all stages of cartel investigations, with a particular focus on complex leniency cases before the European Commission and subsequent EU and national follow-on litigation. Among the many matters on which we have advised are investigations related to baby food, bathroom products, biofuels, block trains, capacitors, de-icing salt, elevators, ethanol benchmarks, fashion, foreign exchange, automobile insurance, oil, and VAT refund. We also advise third parties with respect to cartel investigations of their suppliers or customers. Our deep familiarity with federal and international leniency programs often enables us to prevent clients from incurring criminal penalties or lessen such penalties.
We have represented a diverse base of clients in significant criminal antitrust investigations brought by government authorities around the world, including industry-wide investigations into trading in the global FX Spot market and the manipulation of LIBOR and EURIBOR, as well as in price-fixing investigations concerning fuel surcharges in air services; ocean shipping; medium and heavy trucks; capacitors; aviation insurance; hydrogen peroxide; cathode ray tubes; polyurethane foam; canned seafood; biofuels; oil and numerous other commodities and products. We have extensive experience with dealing with follow-on antitrust class actions and multidistrict litigation that typically follow on the heels of criminal antitrust enforcement actions.
S&C provides clients with a deep bench of experienced lawyers from practice groups across the Firm. In criminal antitrust matters, lawyers from our internationally recognized Antitrust Group and premier Criminal Defense and Investigations Group work together to deliver tailored advice that addresses every facet of criminal antitrust investigations. Lawyers in S&C’s U.S. and European offices, including members of our European Competition Practice, work closely together to provide seamless advice in cross-border matters.
