The Competition Commission has allowed a merger to be consummated before the first stage investigation procedure was completed, ie before the one-month waiting period provided under Article 32 of the Act on Cartels had elapsed. The Commission has shed some light on the ‘important reason’ requirement for early consummation. Furthermore, the merger notification form has recently been published, allowing for standard format filing.

Marcel Meinhardt
Lenz & Staehelin
Zurich