Lundbeck ‘pay for delay’ fines upheld on appeal

 Lundbeck ‘pay for delay’ fines upheld on appeal

The European Court of Justice has dismissed six appeals by Lundbeck and several generics manufacturers against General Court judgments dismissing challenges to the European Commission's 2013 decision finding that they had infringed  Article 101(1) TFEU.

Lundbeck entered into agreements with each of the generics manufacturers whereby they each agreed not to enter the market for the drug citalopram in return for payments by Lundbeck.

The Court of Justice ruled that the General Court was correct in finding that Lundbeck and each of the generics manufacturers were potential competitors.

It upheld the Genera Court’s assessment that the agreements constituted restrictions of competition "by object".  

The judgment puts to an end a long running case dating from 2013. It will no doubt embolden competition authorities and claimants to pursue cases based on similar theories of antitrust harm.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries and Ranbaxy (UK) v Commission (C-586/16), Generics (UK) v Commission (C-588/16), Lundbeck v Commission (C-591/16), Arrow Group and Arrow Generics v Commission (C-591/16), Xellia Pharmaceuticals and Alpharma v Commission (C-611/16 P) and Merck v Commission (C-614/16) ECLI:EU:C:2021:241 to 246